ABSTRACT
As the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu put it, “War is a matter of vital LPSRUWDQFHWRWKHVWDWH>LWLV@DPDWWHURIOLIHRUGHDWKWKHURDGHLWKHUWRVXUYLYDO or to ruin. Hence, it is imperative that it be studied thoroughly.”1 National security is not only the collective responsibility of all the people, but it is also the basis, and one of the major goals, of national development and policy implementation. As a result, without exception, all countries around the world invest a huge amount of scarce resources on building up a reliable defense force. However, as the resources that these countries possess, and the threats that they face, can vary, the formulation and employment of their defense policies need to be carefully GHÀQHG
Since the Republic of China (ROC) is a democratic and open society, it is difÀFXOWIRUWKHJRYHUQPHQWWRIRUPXODWHVLQJOHKDQGHGO\DQGDGYRFDWHSROLFLHVWKDW concern the population at large. But national defense is a matter that concerns the entire nation. The formulation of defense policy, therefore, involves a wide range of considerations in addition to purely military ones, the impact of which on the nation as a whole is even more far-reaching. National defense cannot be decided, therefore, by purely military considerations alone. Planning national defense needs diverse and creative thinking that infuses new ideas into the defense decision-making system, something that in the ROC has been relatively conservative. Elites from all sectors of society must participate in the formulation of national defense policies. Only then will the formulation of defense policy be more exhaustive, extensive, and forward-looking. This is one reason why civilians have been brought into the defense system. Generally speaking, civilian control and civilian participation in defense affairs has been the normal practice in advanced countries. The National Defense Law and Organization Law of the MND of the ROC also now manifest this important principle. $V VRFLHW\ EHFRPHVPRUH GLYHUVLÀHG DQG DVPHPEHUVKLS RI WKH7DLZDQHVH
legislative branch has recently become more varied, the formulation process of defense policy and the roles of decision-makers have changed greatly since the National Defense Law and Organization Law of MND were brought into practice. This chapter will discuss ROC defense strategy and policy system, as well as operating relationships between the defense decision-making mechanisms on the
one hand and civilian roles on the other. It will also offer suggestions on ways to improve the quality of defense policy-making.
