NATIONAL DEFENSE: The Executive Yuan refrained from harsh criticism after the opposition backed uncrewed vehicle bill passed, as it plans to co-sign it, sources saidBy Chung Li-hua / Staff reporter請繼續往下閱讀...The premier is to countersign a Chinese Nationalist Party （KMT）-led bill on defense self-reliance and the uncrewed vehicle industry, and include funding for it in this year’s supplemental budget, sources said yesterday.The Legislative Yuan on Thursday passed the Act on Strengthening Defense Autonomy and Developing the Unmanned Vehicles Industry （強化國防自主暨無人載具產業發展條例）, providing for NT$240 billion （US$7.59 billion） over six years in principle, while allowing additional funding subject to legislative approval.The act directs the Ministry of National Defense to prioritize the procurement of domestically produced “low-cost, high-performance” uncrewed systems. It requires the central government to, in principle, earmark NT$40 billion annually for six consecutive years, using its general budget to procure uncrewed vehicles, to reinforce national defense and drive industrial growth.The Cabinet’s proposal, which requested NT$210 billion in a special budget over six years, failed to win approval. The bill, backed by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party （DPP） caucus, was rejected by the KMT and the smaller opposition Taiwan People’s Party （TPP）, which together hold a legislative majority.The legislature only passed this year’s central government budget on Aug. 14.The Cabinet had originally planned to approve the supplemental budget on Thursday, but decided to delay the move by a week, because the legislature was scheduled to vote on the uncrewed vehicle bill that day, sources said.The Cabinet also planned to adjust the supplemental budget depending on the outcome of the vote, they said.The Executive Yuan wants to accelerate defense buildup and is preparing to co-sign the uncrewed vehicle bill, they said, adding that therefore, following the passage of the opposition-led version on Thursday, it refrained from harsh criticism and instead expressed deep regret and said it would “expedite the allocation of the necessary funding.”The ministry has confirmed that all items cut from the Cabinet’s NT$1.25 trillion defense special bill would be included in this year’s supplemental budget, which means funding for uncrewed vehicles would also be included, the source said.Premier Cho Jung-tai （卓榮泰） is expected to make the final decision on the amount of the supplemental budget after receiving a report from the ministry this week, sources said.The Cabinet initially planned to fund uncrewed vehicles through a special budget, so no funding for the program was included in next year’s central government budget. As the budget proposal must be submitted to the legislature tomorrow, there is not enough time to revise it beforehand, sources said.Waiting until next year’s budget is passed before seeking additional funding could be too slow, they said.The Executive Yuan is expected to submit amendments to the budget at an appropriate time, so it can be reviewed alongside the main budget proposal by the legislature, they said.Additional reporting by CNA新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
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