Taiwan needs a \u201chornet\u2019s nest\u201d of drones to help deter conflict and provide security, the top U.S. diplomat to the democratically governed island said on Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States, Taiwan\u2019s most important international backer and arms supplier despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties, has strongly backed the government\u2019s military modernization plan and increased defense spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Taiwan says it needs to bolster its defenses in the face of a stepped-up threat from China, which claims the island as its own territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking at a forum on drones in the central city of Taichung, Raymond Greene, director of the American Institute in Taiwan and the de facto U.S. ambassador, said drones represented a \u201cgame-changing opportunity\u201d to enhance Taiwan\u2019s security and reinforce peace in the broader region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The U.S. and Taiwan can anchor \u201cdemocratic\u201d drone production and strengthen the collective deterrence posture of the free world, Greene said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFortunately for Taiwan, drones have significantly boosted defenders, even when facing overwhelming odds,\u201d he added, referring to the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing will deter conflict more effectively than turning Taiwan into a hornet\u2019s nest of air, surface, and subsurface drones.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While Taiwan\u2019s government has prioritized drones and other asymmetric systems, in May the opposition-dominated parliament passed only two-thirds of the T$1.25 trillion ($40 billion) in extra defense spending President Lai Ching-te had asked for, earmarking funds only for U.S. arms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The government has now proposed a new, T$210 billion ($6.59 billion) package for surveillance, coastal attack and small unmanned surface drones to the end of 2031.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kuomintang (KMT), Taiwan\u2019s main opposition party, this week proposed its own drone legislation, with a spending cap set at T$240 billion over six years, and annual spending capped at T$40 billion. Its plan would fund drones from the main budget rather than a special budget, which is what the government wants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking at the same forum as Greene, Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen, a senior member of the KMT, said parliament should \u201cwork together\u201d on promoting the development of the drone industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFrom Ukraine to Iran, the nature of international warfare has changed because of drones and unmanned vehicles,\u201d said Lu, widely seen in political circles as a future presidential candidate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Taichung is one of the centers of Taiwan\u2019s drone industry, home to companies like Thunder Tiger and major government defense contractor Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Wednesday, President Lai Ching-te said the need for drones was pressing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFacing changes in the geopolitical situation and the evolution of modern warfare, building asymmetric combat capabilities is a national defense project that is a race against time,\u201d he told a meeting of his Democratic Progressive Party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lai rejects Beijing\u2019s sovereignty claims, saying only the island\u2019s people can decide their future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Taiwan\u00a0says it needs to bolster its defenses in the face of a stepped-up threat from China, which claims the island as its own territory.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":120715,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":49,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["techwatch","pentagon-congress","news"],"primary_category":"techwatch"},"9":{"categories":["battlefield-tech","home"],"primary_category":"battlefield-tech"}}},"categories":[12,49,19,27],"tags":[],"coauthors":[945],"class_list":["post-72815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry","category-techwatch","category-pentagon","category-unmanned"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"JAYNV6YVW5GIPOK4ZTAD555RYE","arc_canonical_url":"\/industry\/techwatch\/2026\/07\/03\/taiwan-needs-a-hornets-nest-of-drones-to-deter-conflict-us-diplomat-says\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\n