Inspired by Ukraine, Taiwan seeks to bolster military preparedness as China threat continues

KAOHSIUNG CITY, Taiwan — After close to a decade, men over 18 in Taiwan will again be required to serve a full year in the military rather than just four months, a return to a conscription policy that had been in place since 2013. The new requirement will be phased in over the year and will reportedly apply to males born on or after Jan. 1, 2005.

Speaking to the nation late last month, Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen pointed to Ukraine holding off the might of the Russian military for more than 300 days, something she argued was due in no small part to Ukraine’s readiness. Tsai said Ukraine’s strong resistance capacity had “bought time” that allowed the international community to come to its aid. Taiwan’s president said she and her cabinet, as well as military officials, had spent much time debating the issue and that although it was “a difficult choice,” expanding the length of conscription was necessary. She also announced that the basic monthly pay for conscripts would jump from around US$212 per month to just under US$662.

Russia’s underperformance in the war in Ukraine has been highly instructive and motivating for Taiwan’s civilian and military leaders. But of course, China has also been taking notes as it watches Ukraine — and for Taiwan, the hope is that China is learning one major lesson from Russia’s stumbles: that even a vastly overpowered nation is hard to beat on its home turf, especially if its people are trained and willing to resist.

Experts in both Taiwan and the United States, though, have long expressed worries about a seeming complacency in Taiwan regarding defense. Taiwan’s leadership says they are addressing these concerns with more scrutiny of weapons and tactics — and by reinstating a year of conscription.

In comments to Fox News Digital, Su Tzu-yun, a research fellow and director of defense strategy at the Taipei-based Institute for National Defense and Security Research, notes that an all-volunteer military is a preference, but both here and globally, it’s becoming harder to recruit professional soldiers.

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“China has increased its force projection capabilities,” Su said. “All of this means that Taiwan needs to increase the size of its active army.” Su noted Taiwan is carefully studying the examples of nations…