TAIPEI (TVBS News) — President Tsai Ing-wen announced during a press conference on Tuesday (Dec. 27) that after 2 years of deliberation, Taiwan will reinstate the one-year military service starting in 2024.
Speaking to the media, Tsai admitted that it was a hard decision to make, adding that she understood the criticism toward the current 4-month military service, where some have deemed "a waste of time."
"In this regard, I have asked the National Security Council and the Ministry of Defense to strengthen training contents and expand training capacity," she said, adding that "the future of mandatory military training will be based on the training methods of advanced countries such as the U.S."
The latest announcement stated that male conscripts born after Jan. 1, 2005 will be required to undergo the newly, reinstated one-year military service.
President Tsai also vowed to update the current training curriculum to keep up with the times. Conscripts will be instructed on handling advanced surface-to-air missiles and drones, and the number of rounds shot during shooting practice within the 1-year service period will be increased to at least 800.
Knowing that the changes to a one-year military service may be hard to accept, Tsai added that Taiwan will also boost the pay of conscripts to NT＄26,307 per month.
Although the extended service is good news for Taiwan's national security, military experts warned that others elements, such as the quality and professionalism of instructors as well as the capacity of facilities, also need to be upgraded.
National Policy Foundation associate research fellow Chieh Chung remarked, "There are too few training centers in the military bases." He added that the current ratio between sergeants and officers is quite high, which means that if troops were to expand, they would have difficulty finding enough grassroots cadres
At present, most Taiwanese seem supportive of the current changes to the military service, but whether or not it will truly strengthen Taiwan's national defenses remains to be seen.
