The plan is to use drones to spot Chinese forces, track their movements and attack them before they can establish a foothold on the island.
Taiwan is preparing for a possible Chinese attack by investing heavily in drones and other unmanned weapons. The strategy is inspired partly by the war in Ukraine, where drones have become an important tool for finding and attacking enemy forces.
The idea is to create a “drone hellscape” around Taiwan. The plan is to use drones to spot Chinese forces, track their movements and attack them before they can establish a foothold on the island, according to the NY Times.
Taiwan’s Lt. Gen. Huang Wen-chi told the NY Times, “Our drone and counter-drone efforts started relatively late, and initially we were trying things out as we went along.”
Taiwan is now putting the strategy into military exercises. During the island’s 10-day Han Kuang military exercises, which began on Wednesday, troops practised using drones for reconnaissance. Soldiers were also trained to detect and destroy enemy drones.
Taiwan is closely watching Ukraine’s David-versus-Goliath approach, where relatively cheap drones have played a major role in locating and attacking enemy forces. Taiwan wants to use a similar approach to counter China, which has a much larger military.
China is about 110 miles from Taiwan and considers the self-governed island part of its territory. Beijing says it prefers peaceful reunification but has not ruled out using military force.
China has been expanding its military capabilities around Taiwan, including warships, aircraft, missiles and drones. Chinese forces have also increased coast guard patrols and military exercises.
Mick Ryan, a retired Australian major general who has studied Ukraine and Taiwan, said, “Taiwan has realized that drones will be important in all the domains, in all the phases, in a potential war with China.”
The Taiwanese government wants the country to become a major global drone manufacturing hub. It has set a target of producing 100,000 drones a month by 2030, with about half intended for export, and also wants its military to acquire more than 210,000 flying and sea-based drones.
Along with this, Taiwan also needs to change how its troops operate. Soldiers would need to move quickly, share information from drones and avoid staying in one location for too long because doing so could make them easy targets.
Shu Hsiao-Huang, an associate research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research in Taipei, said, “The army’s frontline military operations must undergo a total change from the past. In the Russia-Ukraine War, if you fire one round, you won’t have a chance to fire a second, if you just stay lined up there without moving on.”
Taiwan has already begun changing its military structure. It recently created a Littoral Combat Command, which brings together drones, mobile missiles and artillery to strengthen the island’s coastal defences. Taiwan’s government has proposed spending $6.5 billion over five years on drones.
Taiwan is also trying to become an important supplier of drone components to other countries. It exported $115 million worth of drones in the first three months of 2026, more than its total drone exports during all of 2025. The Czech Republic was the biggest destination, while some of the drones have also reached Ukraine.
