Here are the main points raised during the Taiwan People's Party, TPP, Legislative Yuan caucus press conference, questioning President Lai (賴清德) on issues such as defense self-reliance and delays in military procurement:

1. Questioning DPP Secretary-General's Inappropriate Analogy Regarding Military Procurement:

   • Criticized Democratic Progressive Party, DPP, Secretary-General Hsu Kuo-yung(徐國勇) for using a vulgar analogy of "going to the bathroom without toilet paper" to promote arms purchases from the United States. The TPP also questioned how much military equipment could be purchased by 2027, given President Lai's claim that "Beijing will use force against Taiwan by 2027."

2. Criticizing Broken Promises of Defense Self-Reliance and Delays in Indigenous Submarine Construction:

   • Pointed out that the "Hai Kun Submarine" completion press conference, grandly held by former President Tsai Ing-wen(蔡英文) on September 28, 2023, the submarine will still not be completed sea trials by 2026, and even the floatation test has been problematic.
   • Questioned the Ministry of National Defense's initial budget schedule being inconsistent with actual progress. The TPP criticized that the 2023 press conference was actually the "Naming and Launching Ceremony of the Indigenous Submarine Prototype," but there was no actual launching at the time, and it only truly launched in February 2024.
   • Criticized Minister of National Defense Gu Li-hsiung(顧立雄) for stating that not a single cent of the subsequent vessels' budget would be used until the sea trials were passed. However, to cooperate with the DPP's attempt to use the budget as an excuse to launch a major recall campaign, they claimed that deleting the budget would delay the schedule, questioning who was causing the delay.
   • Criticized the prototype submarine's design, which uses six small engines, while the subsequent vessels are to be changed to German MTU military-grade submarine diesel engines, questioning how the two designs will be connected.
   • Pointed out that the Hai Kun submarine's IPMS (Integrated Power System) and electrical systems have problems that may affect the submarine's safety and the lives of the crew. The TPP cited the example of the People's Liberation Army's 361 submarine, where 70 officers and soldiers died due to a faulty ventilation valve, emphasizing the seriousness of IPMS failure.

3. Questioning Delays in Delivery and Frequent Malfunctions of Brave Eagle Advanced Jet Trainers:

   • Pointed out that the total amount of 68.6 billion NTD Brave Eagle advanced jet trainer procurement case originally planned to deliver 66 aircraft from 2021 to 2026, but since 17 aircraft were delivered in 2023, deliveries have been delayed every year, and there are still 17 aircraft missing.
   • According to the Audit Department report, since the delivery of the Brave Eagle advanced jet trainers began in November 2021, there have been multiple malfunctions, with engine failures being the most frequent, accumulating to 111 aircraft and 148 failures. Furthermore, the repair time is too long, with the longest taking up to 707 days.

4. Criticizing Delays in Delivery of Multiple Military Procurement Cases:

   • Tactical Advanced Unmanned Aerial Vehicle: Over 1.28 billion NTD was budgeted to purchase 201 aircraft. Originally planned to deliver 96 aircraft this year, but only 51 aircraft have been received, short 45 aircraft.
   • New Generation Light Frigates: The two new generation light frigates have been delayed until 2027 to be delivered.
   • HF Communication Equipment: Originally scheduled to deliver 832 sets of HF communication equipment this year, but only 91 sets have been delivered.
   • New Harbor Tugboats: The Navy Command originally planned to purchase 7 new harbor tugboats from 2020 to 2024, but a contract has not yet been awarded, and the plan has been delayed until 2029 to receive the first ship.
   • Long-Range Submarine-Launched Heavy Torpedoes: 5.46 billion NTD was budgeted. Originally planned to complete delivery from 2023 to 2026, but due to the U.S. stating that the supply chain was disrupted, the delivery is expected to be delayed until 2026 to 2028, and the current delivery quantity is zero.
   • F-16V Fighters: 247.2 billion NTD was budgeted. Originally planned to purchase 66 fighters from 2020 to 2026, but the delivery quantity to date is zero.
   • AGM-154C Missiles: In the F-16A/V fighter performance upgrade program, the U.S. agreed to supply AGM-154C missiles in 2017. Originally planned to deliver all of them from this year to next year, but due to the need to restart the production line, it is expected to be delayed until 2027 to 2028, and the current delivery quantity is zero.

5. Questioning Price Increases in Military Procurement Cases:

   • M1A2T Tank Procurement Case: Originally budgeted 40.5 billion NTD to purchase 108 vehicles, later increased to 45.3 billion NTD, an increase of 4.8 billion NTD, or 11.87%.
   • Harpoon Missile Procurement Case: Originally planned to spend 86.6 billion NTD to purchase, later increased to 90.2 billion NTD, an increase of 3.6 billion NTD, or 4.03%.
   • Road Universal Tanker Procurement Case: Originally planned to spend 600 million NTD to purchase 77 vehicles, later the quantity was cut to 54 vehicles, but the total budget remained unchanged, resulting in an increase in the cost per vehicle of 3.44 million NTD, an increase of 42.59%.
   • TPS Radar Performance Upgrade Case: Originally budgeted over 1.4 billion NTD, later increased to 1.5 billion NTD, an increase of 93.61 million NTD, or 6.29%.

6. Worries About Insufficient Military Personnel:

   • Pointed out that the manning rate of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Armed Forces combat units has continued to decline since 2020. As of September of this year, the manning rate of the Air Force flight units is only 82%.
   • Questioned the government for investing a large amount of money in purchasing military equipment but not willing to legally allocate the military personnel treatment regulations. The TPP also asked whether Minister Gu Li-hsiung would personally operate the drones if a war breaks out.

7. Questioning and Appealing to President Lai:

   • Questioned whether President Lai can guarantee that the military procurement from the United States in this special budget will be delivered on schedule, form timely combat power, and whether it will squeeze out social welfare expenditures.
   • Called on President Lai to fulfill his promise to go to the Legislative Yuan to receive consultations from legislators and respond to various questions.

8. Demanding Clarification on Whether AIT Inquired About Support for the Defense Budget:

   • Asked Huang Kuo-chang(黃國昌) whether AIT had inquired about his support for the defense budget, as well as the content of the related discussions.

9. Questioning the "20%+N" Tariff Policy:

   • Asked President Lai how long the "20%+N" tariff policy proposed on August 1, 2023, will continue, and called on the government's negotiation team to work harder to successfully complete the consultations.