Taiwan’s Cabinet has proposed a record NT$949.5 billion (about US$31 billion) defence budget for 2026, a 22.9% jump from this year and equal to 3.32% of gross domestic product. The figure surpasses the 3% threshold for the first time since 2009 and, for the first time, folds coast-guard and veterans’ expenditures into military spending to align with NATO accounting standards, Premier Cho Jung-tai said. Officials said the larger outlay will fund additional weapons purchases and training as the island seeks to deter an increasingly assertive China and demonstrate seriousness to its principal arms supplier, the United States. Media reports indicate the package covers items such as High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, Patriot air-defence upgrades and expanded drone fleets. To support the broader fiscal plan, Taipei intends to raise borrowing by NT$400 billion next year, lifting total 2026 government spending to just over NT$3 trillion. The draft budget must still clear the opposition-controlled Legislative Yuan, which last year trimmed several defence appropriations. President Lai Ching-te said on Friday he hopes defence spending can reach 5% of GDP before 2030, describing the goal as a signal of Taiwan’s resolve to safeguard its democracy and maintain stability in the Indo-Pacific. The statement underscores the administration’s longer-term push for higher military outlays amid sustained pressure from Beijing’s near-daily air and naval operations around the island.