Taiwanese soldiers stand in formation around U.S.-made tanks at the inauguration ceremony for an M1A2T tank battalion in Taiwan on October 31, 2025. [EPA Yonhap News File Photo]

The U.S. State Department has expressed concern over the Taiwanese legislature's significant reduction in the defense budget, calling it a "concession to the Chinese Communist Party."

According to Reuters on the 8th (local time), a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department stated in a press release that while the passage of the special defense budget after "protracted delays" is encouraging, "further delays in the execution of the remaining defense capabilities are tantamount to a concession to the Chinese Communist Party."

This stance comes just days before U.S. President Donald Trump's visit to China.

Although the United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan, it has been a strong supporter of Taiwan's defense spending increases as its most important patron and arms supplier.

The Taiwanese government had previously compiled a special defense budget of approximately $40 billion (approximately 58.5 trillion won) to counter China's military threats.

However, Taiwan's Legislative Yuan (parliament), which has a minority of ruling party seats, approved only about two-thirds of the government's requested amount (approximately 36.5 trillion won) after repeated delays in deliberation. The approved budget focused on the procurement of U.S.-made weapons, excluding budget items related to Taiwanese-made drones and missiles.

The opposition parties are in agreement with increasing the government's defense budget itself but argue that the government's proposal is opaque and susceptible to corruption.

The Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense is concerned about a power vacuum resulting from the budget cut.

Among the items excluded from congressional approval is reportedly the ballistic missile interceptor system, which is the core of Taiwan's new air defense system, the "T-Dome."

China has been strongly urging the United States to cease selling arms to Taiwan.

President Trump plans to visit China on November 14-15 for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The Taiwan issue is expected to be one of the major agenda items at the meeting.

U.S. President Donald Trump (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping. [Xinhua Yonhap News File Photo]