Did the Military Press Officer Cry? Lai Qingde Announces NT$4,000 Allowance for 'Third-Tier Combat Units' — Ministry of Defense: 13% of Troops Won't Receive It

President Lai Qingde announced on the 19th the introduction of a 'third-category combat unit allowance' effective July 1, providing NT$4,000 monthly to personnel in brigade-level and below units that sustain combat operations. Regarding the funding source, the Ministry of Defense explained during a press conference on the 20th that the current budget is drawn from the 115th fiscal year's personnel maintenance expenses, with additional budget allocations being processed for any shortfall. Additionally, approximately 13% of the military's personnel structure will not receive any of the first, second, or third-category combat allowances.

Lai stated yesterday that starting July 1, a new third-category combat unit allowance will be introduced for brigade-level and below units that provide sustained combat capability, with each service member receiving NT$4,000 monthly. Furthermore, conscripts serving in combat units will also be eligible for combat allowances on par with volunteer soldiers.

Regarding the third category of 'combat sustainability' units, the Ministry of Defense explained that these include units providing fire support, such as ammunition, fuel, combat medical care, military logistics transport, chemical, and engineering units. Currently, the first-category combat allowance is for frontline combat units, receiving NT$12,000 monthly; the second-category is for combat support units, receiving NT$7,000 monthly; and the newly introduced third-category allowance is for combat sustainability units, receiving NT$4,000 monthly.

How many personnel will receive the NT$4,000 raise, and which troops will not receive any allowance?

Regarding how many troops will benefit from this raise and the funding sources, Major General Kao Chih-hsiung, Director of the Financial Resources Division at the Resources Bureau, stated that this third-category combat allowance targets combat sustainability units, with a payment of NT$4,000, covering approximately 32.2% of the military's personnel structure. The estimated annual budget is about NT$3.57 billion.

Kao explained that the 115th fiscal year's budget is currently funded through the Ministry of Defense's personnel maintenance expenses, with additional budget allocations being processed for any shortfall. The budget required for the 116th fiscal year has already been included in the budget proposal and submitted to the Legislative Yuan for review. Troops who do not receive any of the first to third-category combat allowances—such as military media, public affairs, and press officers—account for approximately 13% of the total military personnel. In other words, units on the frontlines daily dealing with media and China's cognitive warfare do not receive any allowance.

Kao further explained that in recent years, as the warfare environment has changed, the military's defense operations have evolved toward joint operations, using operational zones as the primary unit and integrating various specialized units. Considering that brigade-level units are the basic tactical units of the military with independent combat capabilities, the brigade level was set as the threshold for allowance distribution. Company-level units already receiving first and second-category combat allowances will remain unchanged, while brigade-level and below units providing combat sustainability will receive the third-category combat allowance.

As an example, Kao cited the 54th Engineer Group under the Eighth Army Corps. Its Equipment Company, Bridge Company, Mine Engineer Company, and Combat Engineer Company currently receive the second-category combat allowance, which will remain unchanged. However, the group's brigade headquarters, battalion headquarters, and various battalion support companies currently do not receive any combat allowance but will now be included as recipients of the third-category combat allowance.