Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo Li-hsiung appeared before the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee this morning to deliver a special report and field questions from legislators. Speaking to the media before the session, Minister Koo stated that any relocation of a joint-use military-civilian airport must be carefully assessed in terms of its military missions and civilian uses in both peacetime and wartime.
Asked by the media about the relocation of Songshan Airport, Minister Koo said that in addition to performing military missions related to national defense and security, Songshan Airportplays vital role in domestic air transport, including flights to outlying islands, medical evacuation, and operations of the National Airborne Service Corps. Whether and how these functions could be effectively replaced requires careful assessment from multiple perspectives, and the Ministry of National Defense will provide its professional input to ensure that overall defense capabilities are not affected.
On the expansion of Taichung Airport, Minister Koo responded that the area designated for expansion to meet civil aviation demand is located in the Yangxi (west) zone, whereas the military area is located in the Yangdong (east) zone. The expansion will not affect the ROC Armed Forces' training or combat readiness missions.
In response to media questions about concerns that increasing the defense budget would crowd out spending on civilian needs, Minister Koo stressed that the way to ensure national security and avoid military conflict is to establish effective deterrence, and that effective deterrence depends on strength. Strengthening self-defense capabilities through an increased defense budget is key to establishing effective deterrence and maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait; this has been the long-standing and consistent position of the Ministry of National Defense.