Taiwan Legislature Breaks 230-Day Deadlock, Agrees to Advance NT$1.25T Defense Budget

Taiwan's Legislative Yuan reached a landmark agreement to begin deliberating the government's NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.6 billion) special defense budget after a 230-day deadlock. Per TPP demands, the bill was renamed the 'National Security Defense and Asymmetric Warfare Capabilities Enhancement Program Special Funding Act.' Further negotiations on the substance were scheduled for the following week. A bipartisan group of US Senators — Shaheen, Curtis, Tillis, and Rosen — simultaneously issued a statement urging the legislature to strengthen Taiwan's defense without further delay, signaling continued US congressional support ahead of the May 14–15 Trump-Xi summit.