Taiwan to procure 100,000 drones over next 3 years

By Saadet Gokce

ISTANBUL (AA) - Taiwan on Thursday approved a plan worth $1.4 billion to procure 100,000 drones over the next three years, according to the Economic Affairs Ministry.

It plans to procure 50,898 drones for civil and government usage and 48,750 for defense purposes.

Taiwan's legislature, known locally as the Legislative Yuan, approved the investment for domestic production of unmanned drones for the next six years, according to the Taipei Times.

The island nation currently has around 250 drone manufacturers, whose production value reached $5.05 billion in New Taiwan dollars in 2024.

Taipei has inked eight memoranda of understanding to enter supply chains with various countries worldwide, including the US, Japan, the Czech Republic, and Poland.

Taiwan has proposed a budget of $31.1 billion for defense next year, amounting to over 3% of the island's GDP.