What is Taiwan's T-Dome?

by AFP Staff Writers
Taipei (AFP) Nov 30, 2025

Taiwan's government has proposed $40 billion in extra defence spending over several years, with the focus on developing a multi-layered air defence system dubbed "T-Dome".

The system will be designed to protect the democratic island against a potential attack by Chinese fighter jets, missiles or drones.

China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to annex it.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has promised to speed up construction of the T-Dome to create "a safety net" for Taiwan and counter what he calls China's "intensifying" threat to the island and region.

Here is what we know about the T-Dome:

- What is it? -

The T-Dome was announced by Lai on October 10 and has drawn comparisons with Israel's Iron Dome anti-missile system.

But there are key differences.

While the Iron Dome is designed mainly for short-range weapons, the T-Dome will face a "much wider array of threats", Taipei-based security analyst J. Michael Cole said.

"This is aimed at PLA aircraft, ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as, increasingly, drones," said Cole, using the acronym for China's People's Liberation Army.

Taiwan already has air defence systems, including the US-built Patriot and domestically-made Sky Bow systems.

And it is waiting to receive National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System fire units from the United States.

The T-Dome will integrate these with radars, sensors and other advanced technology to provide what Lai describes as "high-level detection and effective interception".

"If you do not integrate these detection devices, then those air-defence missiles, whether for counter-fire, counter-attack or counter-drone purposes, can't achieve efficient interception or effective fire coordination and allocation," Defence Minister Wellington Koo has said.

The T-Dome will have two major components, said Su Tzu-yun, a military expert at Taipei's Institute for National Defense and Security Research.

It will have a command and control system that "collects radar data, identifies threats, decides which interceptor should fire, and coordinates all units so they react within seconds," Su said.

The other part will be the "interceptor layer" -- the weapons used to "shoot down incoming threats" at different altitudes.

- Why does Taiwan need it? -

Taiwan has learned vital lessons from Ukraine on the importance of having air defence systems that can protect combat forces, critical infrastructure and civilian buildings.

While Taiwan has been upgrading its military over the past decade and has spent billions of dollars on US arms, it would be outgunned in a conflict with China.

Having the ability to "neutralise" a sudden Chinese missile strike would help deter Beijing from attacking, Su said.

Su said Chinese warships routinely deployed near Taiwan are capable of firing hundreds of missiles at Taiwan's airports, radar sites and military bases "within three minutes".

That does not include the hundreds of missiles China has on land.

"This is why Taiwan needs an integrated air defence system capable of responding to these emerging challenges," Su said.

- When will it be ready? -

That depends on a range of factors, including when the United States can deliver the weapons and technology needed.

Taiwan is already waiting for billions of dollars' worth of US arms.

The defence ministry has published a list of items it plans to procure with the new budget, including precision artillery, long-range precision-strike missiles, anti-ballistic and anti-armour missiles, and unmanned systems.

The opposition-controlled parliament has not yet approved the budget and it is not clear what Taiwan plans to buy from the United States, but Lai said there would be "significant" US arms acquisitions.

Lai said Wednesday that Taiwan's military aims to have a "high level" of joint combat readiness by 2027 -- which US officials have previously cited as a possible timeline for a Chinese attack on the island -- and "highly resilient and comprehensive deterrent defence capabilities by 2033".

"Completing the entire T-Dome architecture before 2027 is impossible," said Su.

"System integration and the production of new interceptors -- missiles, anti-aircraft guns, and directed-energy weapons -- will all take time."

Readiness does not only depend on deliveries, said Drew Thompson, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University.

"It really comes down to how you define effectiveness, how you define readiness and what's included in T-Dome," Thompson said.

"Are they counting war reserve munitions? Do they have enough missiles in storage? Are they distributed?"

And it also requires the military "learning how to operate" the systems.

Taiwan's president to propose $40 bn in extra defence spending
Taipei (AFP) Nov 26, 2025 - Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said Wednesday his government will propose $40 billion in additional defence spending over eight years, as the democratic island seeks to deter a potential Chinese invasion.

Taiwan has ramped up defence spending in the past decade as Chinese military pressure intensified, but US President Donald Trump's administration has pushed the island to do more to protect itself.

Lai said Wednesday the military aimed to have a "high level" of joint combat readiness against China by 2027 -- which US officials have previously cited as a possible timeline for a Chinese attack on the island.

"The ultimate goal is to establish defence capabilities that can permanently safeguard democratic Taiwan," Lai said at a news conference in Taipei after announcing the $40 billion spending plan in an opinion piece in the Washington Post.

Communist China has never ruled Taiwan, but Beijing claims the island is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to annex it.

Lai's announcement came as Tokyo and Beijing were locked in a weeks-long diplomatic spat that followed remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggesting Japan could intervene militarily in any attack on Taiwan.

The United States' top envoy in Taiwan said he "welcomes" the government's spending plan and urged the island's rival political parties to "find common ground" on boosting its defences.

Lai said the extra spending would go towards new arms purchases from the United States as well enhancing Taiwan's ability to wage asymmetrical warfare.

But he said the spending was not tied to Taiwan's ongoing tariff negotiations with the United States, insisting the main goal was to "demonstrate Taiwan's determination to defend" itself.

"We aim to bolster deterrence by inserting greater costs and uncertainties into Beijing's decision-making on the use of force," Lai said in the Washington Post.

His comments also follow US approval earlier this month for $330 million-worth of parts and components in Washington's first military sale to Taiwan since Trump's return to the White House.

- 'Safeguarding Taiwan's future' -

Lai, who leads the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), previously laid out plans to boost annual defence spending to more than three percent of GDP next year and five percent by 2030, following US pressure to spend more on protecting itself against a potential Chinese attack.

The government has proposed NT$949.5 billion ($30 billion), or 3.32 percent of GDP, for defence spending next year.

The additional spending plan announced Wednesday would be spread out over eight years and exceeds the $32 billion previously revealed to AFP by a senior DPP lawmaker.

In the opinion piece, Lai said he would accelerate the development of the so-called "T-Dome" -- a multi-layered air defence system -- which will "bring us closer to the vision of an unassailable Taiwan, safeguarded by innovation and technology".

"My message here is clear: Taiwan's dedication to peace and stability is unwavering," Lai said.

"No country will be more determined in safeguarding Taiwan's future than our own."

But the government may struggle to get the proposed spending approved by parliament, where the main opposition Kuomintang party, which advocates closer ties with China, controls the purse strings with the help of the Taiwan People's Party.

Recently elected Kuomintang chairperson Cheng Li-wun has previously opposed Lai's defence spending plans, saying Taiwan "doesn't have that much money".