TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's military released its 2025 National Defense Report (2025國防報告書) Thursday (Oct. 9), warning of escalating Chinese threats and emphasizing "Agile and Resilient Armed Forces" strategy. The Ministry of National Defense (MND, 國防部) aligned the comprehensive security assessment with President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) "Four Pillars of Peace action plan" (和平四大支柱) amid intensifying regional tensions.
The 120-page document spans four sections, eight chapters, and 34 subsections covering military administration, command structures, and armament capabilities. Featuring 66 photographs and 54 detailed infographics, the report emphasizes escalating U.S.-China strategic competition and Beijing's military expansion as primary threats to Indo-Pacific stability and global security architecture.
Defense officials outlined five strategic objectives emphasizing multi-domain deterrence, resilient defense capabilities, and enhanced reserve forces to counter gray zone warfare tactics. Liu Wen-ching, head of the Department of Strategic Planning at MND, Taiwan's military planning division, stressed expanding military exchanges with the United States and allied nations to establish comprehensive security networks against cybersecurity threats and cognitive warfare operations.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday (Oct. 7) that Taiwan's critical energy vulnerability emerged as China conducted military exercises around the island. Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) acknowledged that Taiwan's liquefied natural gas reserves would last only 11 days under a Chinese blockade, with 97% of energy imports arriving via vulnerable maritime supply lines requiring enhanced wartime storage capacity.