TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's military faces a significant decline in volunteer personnel, according to a report by the United Daily News on Tuesday (Sept. 3). The Ministry of National Defense's (MND, 國防部) 2025 budget lists 160,749 volunteer personnel, a decrease of 5,486 from 2024, equating to over 3% or the size of 11 combined arms battalions.
The budget highlights that the hardest-hit areas are non-commissioned officers, veteran soldiers, and frontline combat units. Association of Strategic Foresight researcher Chieh Chung (揭仲) noted that the "combat unit additional volunteer service pay" (戰鬥部隊增支志願役勤務加給) for 2025 is NT$3.751 billion, down nearly 9% from this year's NT$4.119 billion.
Chieh further analyzed this, suggesting that personnel loss in frontline combat units is far more severe than in non-combat units.
Scholars have warned of the increasing frequency of military training and the need to allocate personnel to new units, exacerbating the manpower shortage. The pressure on military personnel has led to high attrition rates, creating a vicious cycle of depletion.
Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) attended the "Taiwan Parliamentary All-Out Defense Committee" (立法院全民防衛連線) inauguration on Tuesday. She expressed hope for a systematic and professional approach to integrating national defense into policy.
Hsiao also announced that President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) will soon convene the first meeting of the "Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee" (全社會防衛韌性委員會) at the Presidential Office.