Supported by Taiwan’s strong semiconductor and PCB distribution network, Taiwan’s drone industry is working to build a “non-China supply chain,” according to recent government statements.
Chiang Chen-wei, executive director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ “Drone Diplomacy Task Force,” stated that Taiwan holds an excellent strategic position in the global non-China drone supply chain and hopes to cooperate with allies and like-minded countries to make Taiwan the Asia-Pacific hub for the democratic drone supply chain.
Chiang shared the development at the Taiwanese-German Aerospace Conference organized by the German Trade office in Taipei on May 5, according to a report by Radio Taiwan International.
Making Taiwan the Asia-Pacific hub for the democratic drone supply chain
According to the Central News Agency (CNA), Chiang Chen-wei, delivered a keynote speech titled “Drone Taiwan,” explaining the importance of Taiwan’s drone diplomacy efforts, outlining the current state and development of Taiwan’s drone industry, and analyzing future opportunities and directions for cooperation with international partners.
Chiang stated that Taiwan’s strong manufacturing capabilities give it a highly advantageous position in the global non-China drone supply chain. As global geopolitical conditions continue to change, drones have become one of the strategic assets essential for national security and industrial resilience.
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For this reason, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs established the “Drone Diplomacy Task Force” with the goal of cooperating with allies and like-minded nations on future initiatives. By leveraging Taiwan’s expertise and experience in semiconductor technology, the task force aims to “use its strength and experience in chip diplomacy to build the drone industry into a mountain range protecting Taiwan, and make Taiwan the Asia-Pacific center of the drone democratic supply chain.”
Chiang analyzed developments in international conflicts, evolving global conditions, and regional security changes from an international perspective, emphasizing Taiwan’s strategic importance as a key hub in the First Island Chain.
He then introduced Taiwan’s drone industry policies and the establishment of the “Asia UAV AI Innovation and Application R&D Center,” explaining the overall scale and capabilities of Taiwan’s drone industry. Using data related to Taiwan’s drone production and exports, as well as the industry’s strengths and weaknesses, he analyzed how Taiwan can integrate with the international community and play a key role in the global non-China drone supply chain.
Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the conference not only helped facilitate technological exchanges and commercial cooperation between Taiwan and Germany, but also demonstrated Taiwan’s solid position as a reliable partner in the global democratic supply chain. The ministry said the event was highly significant for promoting Taiwan’s “drone diplomacy.”
Taiwan has stronger advantages
According to Fangyan News, Huang Wen-chi, director-general of the Department of Strategic Planning under Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense, stated on the radio program News Firecrackers on May 6 that although Taiwan’s drone industry is still in its early stages, its growth momentum is already becoming visible.
He pointed out that according to recently released data from Taiwan’s Executive Yuan, Taiwan’s drone industry “export value in 2025 was approximately US$93 million, but exports in just the first quarter of this year have already exceeded US$100 million.”
Huang Wen-chi pointed out that The Economist has also reported that Taiwan’s drone industry is “gradually picking up momentum” and is expected to play an important role in the future non-China supply chain.
However, he emphasized that from a business logic perspective, companies will not invest large amounts of resources unless there is sufficient market demand. In other words, “When I have enough external orders, I’ll slowly expand my production capacity,” and only then can external resources be combined to build independent R&D capabilities.
He further noted that if drone development is combined with national defense needs, it cannot be handled purely by normal market logic. For example, countries such as South Korea, Japan, and Australia have recently invested heavily in order to establish domestic drone production capacity. However, “Taiwan is an island,” which makes its situation more difficult than other countries.
Huang said, “if the Chinese navy cuts off Taiwan’s sea lanes during wartime, and Taiwan lacks its own production capacity and relies solely on external supplies, it would be finished in two hits.”
Therefore, he stated that the Ministry of National Defense hopes to use a special budget to integrate government, industry, academia, and foreign technology transfer channels, enabling Taiwan’s advanced high-tech industries to “build a national team for drones.”
He added that Taiwan actually has better conditions than many countries because it already has a complete industrial supply chain, with mature capabilities in communications, batteries, and navigation technologies. What remains is to absorb combat experience from other countries and establish a stronger R&D ecosystem.
Huang also noted that Taiwanese companies are already “ready to move,” and hope to expand through a NT$1.25 trillion defense special budget. Reportedly, many of these companies originally produced radio-controlled aircraft, toys, or aerospace components, with drones being only one part of their business.
So far, 267 companies have joined Taiwan’s drone industry.
According to reports from Formosa TV News Network (FTV), Premier Cho Jung-tai stated that as global demand for a non-China supply chain continues to grow, Taiwan has favorable conditions to capture international market opportunities, creating both domestic and export-driven growth.
He projected that Taiwan’s drone industry could reach a target output value of NT$40 billion by 2030.
He also noted that more than 267 companies in Taiwan are currently involved in the drone supply chain, covering system integration and key component manufacturing.
Cho further revealed that to strengthen industrial capacity and supply chain resilience, the Executive Yuan plans to invest NT$44.2 billion between 2025 and 2030 to support the development of the drone industry.
