00:00The commander of U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific has voiced concerns over Taiwan's defense spending.
00:06Our foreign military sales with Taiwan are not out of the norm over the, you know, almost 50 years of
00:14Taiwan Relations Act.
00:16And so we can't want Taiwan's defense more than they want it itself.
00:23And it's not a chicken and the egg because you're not going to get chicken or eggs if you starve
00:27the chicken.
00:28So it's very important for them to fund their own defense.
00:32Paparo was speaking in front of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.
00:37Taiwan's president put forward a $40 billion U.S. special defense budget months ago, but it remains stalled in the
00:43opposition-controlled legislature.
00:45Both of Taiwan's main opposition parties have proposed their own versions, but their funding falls far short of the original
00:51bill.
00:52The U.S. is Taiwan's main partner and the source for many of its weapons.
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