Lai's government has been under US pressure to improve it ability to defend itself against a potential attack by China, which claims the island is part of its territory.

"We will accelerate our building of the T-Dome, establish a rigorous air defence system in Taiwan with multi-layered defence, high-level detection, and effective interception," Lai said during Taiwan's National Day celebrations.

Lai said Taiwan was determined to "maintain peace through strength" and called on China to "renounce the use of force or coercion to change the status quo across the Taiwan Strait".

Lai's speech followed a bruising 17 months for the president, a staunch defender of Taiwan's sovereignty who is loathed by Beijing.

A failed effort this year to unseat dozens of opposition lawmakers, which could have given Lai's Democratic Progressive Party a majority in the parliament, left the government weakened.

US tariffs on Taiwanese shipments and doubts over President Donald Trump's willingness to protect the island have also eroded confidence in the key relationship.

Lai reiterated on Friday plans to ramp up defence spending to more than three percent of gross domestic product next year and five percent by 2030, "showing our determination to safeguard the nation".