By Sean Lin / Staff reporterThe Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) National Policy Foundation think tank yesterday raised questions over revised budget proposals for the current fiscal year, saying that the government might be reinstating “dollar diplomacy” through a drastically inflated “black budget,” while the national defense budget has slumped to a record low of NT$327.8 billion (US$10.88 billion). At NT$1.72 billion, the black budget for diplomacy has nearly quadrupled from last year’s NT$464 million, foundation Department of National Security convener Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) told a news conference in Taipei. The budget would make up 6.47 percent of the nation’s overall spending over the next 12 months, compared with 1.89 percent over the past 12 months, Lin said, adding that it has received a larger allocation than the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ black budget. There is an uneven distribution of funds in the defense budget, with personnel costs taking up 46 percent, meaning the quota for purchasing, researching and developing weapons has been reduced, he said. The increase was forecast, despite a Ministry of National Defense plan to reduce the number of volunteer officers and soldiers from 175,000 to about 160,000, which makes it seem improbable, he said.

Source: Taipei Times September 20, 2017 15:56 UTC