The proposed 2011 national defense budget of NT$297.2 billion was sent to the Legislature Monday. The figure was the lowest in nearly five years and represents less than three percent of the GDP. Of the total amount, NT$272.7 billion was listed as open funds, while NT$24.5 billion was budgeted for classified spending, down nearly 40 percent, or the lowest in history. The following are excerpts from local media coverage of the subject: China Times: Legislator Lin Yu-fang of the ruling Kuomintang said that NT$45 billion of the total national defense budget for 2011 will be used to pay for weapons bought from the United States. Lin said this is mainly because the U.S. has announced up to US$11 billion in arms sales to Taiwan over the past two years, so big payments will have to be made next year. For this reason, other weapons procurement spending for 2011 will be less than NT$1 billion -- the lowest in recent years, Lin said. Even if some weapons purchases originally scheduled for next year may be shelved or canceled, military production and research and development of counterattack or defensive weapons has remained steady, he said. Lin also said the production of Hsiung Feng 2E surface-to-surface cruise missile system developed by the Chunghsan Institute of Science and Technology in Taiwan has been on track, and some of them are expected to be commissioned at the end of the year. Lin said this will prove that the Ma administration, while improving cross- Taiwan Strait relations, has not ignored the importance of strengthening national defense capability. Liberty Times: Legislator Lin said classified funds under the 2011 national defense budget will be NT$24.5 billion, down 37.5 percent from the NT$39.2 billion budgeted this year. The big drop was not because the classified budget was cut significantly, but because many items that were listed as classified were moved to the open category, he said. Meanwhile, the financial straits of the nation have squeezed the scale and progress of the recruiting system. The Ministry of National Defense said in its five-year military personnel buildup report that under the military streamlining program, the number of servicemen in Taiwan's military will be set at 215,000 people. Reflecting the difficulty of recruiting people, it set a recruiting goal of 90 percent of the total, or 193,000 people, for 2011. Though the military said it will gradually increase the number of recruits, it will not stress pushing for the completion of the new recruiting system by 2014 as had been originally planned. (Aug. 31, 2010) 