Taipei’s strategists are finally making the pivot away from conventional armed forces toward something nimbler—namely the mass production and use of cheap and deadly drones.
Taiwan has finally had its “Eureka!” moment when it comes to an effective strategy for defending against a likely Chinese blockade and/or invasion of their island.
The answer clearly is not to try to remake their military in the image of America’s armed forces. That prospect is both far too costly and time consuming to adequately prepare their besieged island for a realistic defense against the size and scope of a potential Chinese invasion force.
China Is Steadily Moving Toward a Taiwan Invasion
China’s Defense Minister Dong Jun delivered a fiery speech at the Beijing Xiangshan Forum in mid-September, in which he demanded the “restoration” of Taiwan to China.
According to Breaking Defense, Dong insisted that reclaiming Taiwan “is an integral part of the postwar order,” and that “China would never allow any separatist attempts for Taiwan independence to succeed.” The Chinese defense minister punctuated his abrasive talk with the promise to resist “any external military interference” in a Chinese bid to reclaim Taiwan.
With these comments in mind, Taipei’s strategists are finally making the pivot away from conventional armed forces toward something nimbler. Taiwan is moving slowly toward preparing to wage a protracted insurgency against any nation, like China, that would try to take away the Taiwanese people’s sovereignty through force.
Unmanned systems dominated this year’s Taipei Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (TADTE), which opened to the public on September 18. Many of Taiwan’s recent acquisitions were on display, which is why everyone reported that the emphasis by Taiwan was on unmanned systems. Switchblade drones, Overwatch Interceptor counter-drone missiles, and even Drive-LD underwater drones from Anduril Industries were all put on display.
In many respects, Anduril stole the show. There was even an agreement between the government of Taiwan and Anduril Industries to explore the mass production of Anduril’s Barracuda-500 cruise missile. Given the unique geography of Taiwan—a mountainous island, compared to Ukraine’s relatively flat and open landmass—drones for the maritime environment seem like a sensible investment, especially given the growing naval threat that China poses to the island.
Drones Will Be Key to Defending Taiwan
Taiwan is cooperating for the production of the Chien Feng IV loitering munition being developed jointly with the US defense firm, Kratos. That system is inspired by Kratos’ MQM-178 Firejet target drone, the high-speed weapon that is meant for precise standoff attacks against warships as far out as 620 miles, according to Breaking Defense.
Interestingly, this all comes amid the Trump administration’s ill-advised decision to suspend $400 million in US military aid to the Taiwanese amid tense trade deal talks with Beijing.
But because Taiwan is already constructing significantly advanced weapons on their own, officials in Taipei do not need to concern themselves about many weapons coming from the United States that might be cut off because of these arms embargoes that the Trump administration is instituting. In fact, that might be the key to Taiwan’s survival. Any country that cannot stand on its own will eventually fall, after all—and that principle applies to Taiwan, too.
About the Author: Brandon J. Weichert
Brandon J. Weichert is a senior national security editor at The National Interest. Recently, Weichert became the host of The National Security Hour on America Outloud News and iHeartRadio, where he discusses national security policy every Wednesday at 8pm Eastern. He is also a contributor at Popular Mechanics and has consulted regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. Weichert’s writings have appeared in multiple publications, including The Washington Times, National Review, The American Spectator, MSN, The Asia Times, and others. His books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China’s Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran’s Quest for Supremacy. His newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed via Twitter @WeTheBrandon.
Image: Shutterstock / jamesonwu1972.
