US envoy urges Taiwan to build drone-heavy defenses
Raymond Greene said drones could help Taiwan deter conflict as Taipei debates new multibillion-dollar defense funding.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
A senior United States representative in Taiwan urged the island to expand its drone forces, saying unmanned systems could strengthen deterrence against China. Raymond Greene, director of the American Institute in Taiwan, made the case Thursday at a drone forum in Taichung, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
Greene, who serves as Washington’s de facto ambassador to Taipei, said drones could improve Taiwan’s security and support stability in the wider region. He said Ukraine’s war experience showed that drones had helped defenders facing stronger opponents.
“Nothing will deter conflict more effectively than turning Taiwan into a hornet’s nest of air, surface and subsurface drones,” Greene said, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
Drone push tied to Taiwan’s defense plans
Taiwan has put drones and other asymmetric weapons near the center of its military modernization effort, Al Jazeera and Reuters reported. The approach is aimed at making any attack costly by relying on mobile, dispersed and relatively lower-cost systems.
The United States is Taiwan’s main international backer and arms supplier, despite the absence of formal diplomatic relations. Washington has supported Taipei’s plans to update its military and raise defense spending, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
Taiwan’s government says it must strengthen its defenses because of growing pressure from China. Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory and opposes continuing US support for the island, even when that support is unofficial.
Greene said the US and Taiwan could help anchor drone production among democracies and improve collective deterrence, Al Jazeera and Reuters reported. His remarks came as Taipei is trying to secure money for new drone programs after a partial setback in parliament.
Funding fight in Taipei
In May, Taiwan’s opposition-controlled parliament approved only about two-thirds of the $40bn in extra defense spending sought by President William Lai Ching-te, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters. Lawmakers allocated money only for US arms, leaving other parts of Lai’s proposal unfunded.
The government has since proposed a new 210 billion Taiwan dollar package, worth about $6.59bn, to fund surveillance drones, coastal attack drones and small unmanned surface vessels through the end of 2031, Al Jazeera and Reuters reported.
Taiwan’s main opposition party, the Kuomintang, put forward its own drone bill this week. According to Al Jazeera and Reuters, the KMT plan would cap spending at 240 billion Taiwan dollars, or $7.5bn, over six years, with annual spending limited to 40 billion Taiwan dollars, or $1.25bn.
The KMT proposal would draw funding from the regular budget. Lai’s government wants to use a special budget for the program, Al Jazeera and Reuters reported.
Lai told a meeting of his Democratic Progressive Party on Wednesday that the need to build drone capacity was urgent. “Facing changes in the geopolitical situation and the evolution of modern warfare, building asymmetric combat capabilities is a national defence project that is a race against time,” he said, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
Lai rejects China’s sovereignty claim over Taiwan and says only Taiwan’s people can decide the island’s future. In May, a senior US military official said Washington had put a $14bn arms sale to Taiwan on hold to preserve munitions for the US-Israel war against Iran, Al Jazeera and Reuters reported.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.