The government of Taiwan has budgeted NT$44.2 billion (US$1.38 billion) to cultivate the country’s Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV) industry over the next five years, which would make the nation a major player in the industry’s democratic supply chain in the Asia-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai said Sunday.
Cho made the remarks during a visit to the facilities of Cub Elecparts Inc. Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Su-yueh and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Hsieh Yi-fong also participated in the trip, Taipei Times reported.
Cub Elecparts has transitioned from the automotive industry to the defense industry, which is the top priority among the nation’s five most trusted industries, Cho said.
The company managed to build a comprehensive counter-drone defense system that covers detection, identification, tracking, and “soft-kill” and “hard-kill” measures, he said.
Cub Elecparts’ system meets modern military standards, and offers effective protection of military bases, airports, key infrastructure and venues where crowds gather, he added.
The Executive Yuan has approved the Ministry of Economic Affairs’ plan to spend NT$44.2 billion (US$1.38 billion) to cultivate the domestic UAV industry, Cho said.
“The economic output generated by drones reached NT$12.9 billion last year (US$402.7 million), 2.5 times more than that of 2024. Drone exports last year also increased 21 times to reach NT$2.95 billion (US$92.1 million),” he added.
Taiwan has become indispensable in the non-red supply chain, Cho said, adding that the UAV industry is one of the nation’s 13 key strategic industries.
“Taiwan’s drone industry would experience a huge blow if the legislature passes a version of the defense budget that does not take it into account. Therefore, we would make every effort to secure the Legislative Yuan’s support for the Executive Yuan’s budget proposal,” Cho said, calling on Chen and Hsien to support the Cabinet’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.16 billion) bill to shore up the nation’s defense capabilities in the next eight years.
Taiwan can only gain truly dignified peace by building a “Taiwan shield” that is able to produce and supply high-technology products, he said.
The legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee will review the draft act on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Separately, Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun said the Integrated Plan for the Development of the Unmanned Vehicle Industry would bolster drone applications in various fields, including national defense and security; disaster prevention and response; smart manufacturing; smart transportation; healthcare logistics; agricultural monitoring and precision farming operations; and maritime and airspace governance.
The plan aims to create a non-red drone supply chain by next year by stimulating domestic demand for drones through procurement from the government sector, establishing a cybersecurity testing system that aligns with international standards and improving the management system of domestic testing facilities, she said, adding that the government’s general budget plan has also allocated more than NT$7.2 billion (US$224.8 million) for those tasks.
In the “Silicon Prosperity Declaration and the Taiwan-US Joint Statement on Economic Security Cooperation” signed in January, the alignment of Taiwan-US drone cybersecurity certification mechanisms and cooperation on drones in the “non-red supply chain” were among the seven key areas of collaboration between the two nations, Cheng said.
More than 90 percent of drones made in Taiwan are exported to the Czech Republic, Poland and the US, she said, adding that it showed that Taiwan has gradually become a reliable supply.
The continued delay by the legislature in reviewing the Cabinet’s draft special defense act could hinder the development of Taiwan’s UAV industry, she added. (Taipei Times; Photo © Taiwan’s Premier Cho Jung-tai, Center, Visits Facilities of Cub Elecparts Inc. in Taichung © Executive Yuan)
