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Taiwan Is Rushing to Make Its Own Drones Before It's Too Late


Unmanned vehicles are increasingly becoming essential weapons of war. But with a potential conflict with China looming large, Taiwan is scrambling to build a domestic drone industry from scratch.

Beijing has made clear that it intends to complete its aggressive modernization of the People’s Liberation Army by 2027; Taiwanese officials say invasion could come that early but almost certainly before Premier Xi Jinping’s current term in office ends in 2029. In particular, the team was dispatched to learn lessons from Ukraine, whose defensive strategy has relied heavily on small, tactical, cheap UAVs capable of carrying out multiple missions and integrating closely with ground units. Taipei is investing in anti-drone systems, Fang says, but it remains an “emerging concept.” (A defense analyst told WIRED that Taiwan is simply “not prepared to fight in a complex electromagnetic environment.”)

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