According to Taiwan’s Yonhap News Agency (local time), Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen will hold a National Security Council (NSC) and announce the extension of military service.
The extension of military service will take effect in January 2024, and will be mandatory for one year from those born in 2005. At the same time, the salary of compulsory service workers is expected to rise from about $6,500 (about 270,000 won) to $20,000 (about 830,000 won).
Citing an internal report by the Taiwanese military, the Yonhap News Agency said Taiwan’s low birth rate and China’s increased military threats led to an extension of its military service.
Taiwan has about 170,000 active-duty troops, less than one-tenth of China’s. The Taiwanese authorities’ position is that an extension of the military service period is inevitable to narrow the power gap early, Yonhap News Agency said. Taiwan is a single China, continuously threatened by the three main powers of Ji Ji-ping, seeking support from allies such as the United States, and Japan has also announced a policy to strengthen its military power and transform itself from a simple defense system to an active response to North Korea and China’s continued provocations.
Taiwan has continuously reduced its military service period since it began its mandatory service system in 1951. Taiwanese men over the age of 18 were originally required to serve in the military for two to three years, but their service period was shortened to one year in 2008. In 2013, the service period was changed to four months.
As military pressure from China has recently increased, discussions have continued since the beginning of this year to extend the mandatory service period again. According to a poll of 1,070 voters aged 20 or older by the Taiwan People’s Fund (TPOF) from the 12th to the 13th, 73.2% of Taiwanese said that the military service period should be at least one year.
KS CHOI
ASIA JOURNAL
