Former US Intelligence Chief Urges Taiwan Legislature to Pass Defense Budget 'With All Due Haste' Before Trump-Xi Summit

Former US Director of National Intelligence and senior intelligence officials publicly urged Taiwan's legislature on April 30, 2026 to pass President Lai Ching-te's special defense budget 'with all due haste' — the latest in a series of escalating American pressure signals directed at Taiwan's opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan ahead of the May 14-15 Trump-Xi Beijing summit. The statement follows AIT Director Raymond Greene's April 27 intervention ('comprehensive defense budget'), INDOPACOM Admiral Paparo's April 22-23 Senate testimony ('can't starve the chicken'), and INDOPACOM Deputy Commander Vice Admiral Karl Thomas's March 27 press visit. The ex-intelligence chief's call represents the civilian intelligence community adding its voice to the military-diplomatic chorus pressuring Taiwan's parliament. The budget standoff remains deadlocked: the KMT (main opposition) has proposed a NT$800 billion cap versus the Lai administration's full NT$1.25 trillion request for 2026-2033, covering HIMARS, M109A7 Paladin howitzers, Patriot interceptor replenishment, and integrated air defense systems. The urgency intensifies because Beijing is expected to press Trump at the May 14-15 summit for a commitment to pause or slow new arms sales to Taiwan — making pre-summit passage a key test of US-Taiwan strategic alignment. Taiwan's defense budget debate is now intertwined with the summit diplomacy: passage signals Taiwan's self-defense commitment to Trump; non-passage may weaken the US negotiating position on Taiwan. The Trump administration has demanded Taiwan reach 5% of GDP in defense spending, up from the current approximately 3.3% planned.