Cabinet spokesperson Lo Ping-cheng says Taiwan’s government is aware that the public supports lengthening Taiwan’s period of military conscription. Lo’s words on Thursday come after more than two-thirds of respondents to a recent poll said Taiwan should train conscripts for longer.
Right now, Taiwanese men born after 1994 have to do four months of military service. That’s much shorter than in the past, when most men served for two years.
With the unfolding conflict in Ukraine, polls suggest that more and more Taiwanese people support lengthening the conscription period. Many commentators have drawn comparisons between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the threat China poses to Taiwan.
Lo says the public’s support for longer conscription shows that Taiwanese people are united behind defending Taiwan’s democracy. The government, he says, is carefully considering adjusting the system of military service in Taiwan and will announce any changes in due course.