Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry.
Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper).
The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies.
Photo: Chen Chih-cheng, Taipei Times
Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin said: “Yes, we already have joint ventures with Poland.”
Taiwan also collaborates with the Baltic states and the Czech Republic, he added.
As Russia often uses drones to harass its neighbors, countries in central and eastern Europe have rich drone experience, so the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Ministry of Economic Affairs have been facilitating bilateral or multilateral cooperation with these nations, he said.
Photo: Huang Ching-hsuan, Taipei Times
Taiwan has a “central and eastern Europe supply chain resilience plan,” which includes Poland, as it is not only located at the center of the region, but is also the region’s largest economy, which plays an important role in Ukraine’s resistance against Russia’s invasion, Lin said.
Taiwan’s drone cooperation with Poland could create a win-win situation from the perspective of integrated diplomacy, also allowing Taiwan to connect with the world, he said.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese drone manufacturers such as Thunder Tiger Corp (雷虎科技), GEOSAT Aerospace & Technology Inc (經緯航太科技) and Coretronic Corp (中光電) have “great capacity,” Lin said, adding that they are eager to participate in international collaborations.
Either in the democratic supply chain or economic security partnerships, uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) would be a key item of Taiwan’s international cooperation efforts, he said.
The MOFA has a “drone diplomacy task force,” aimed at establishing an international drone alliance, he said, adding that it would be greatly beneficial for Taiwan to help its allies and like-minded countries establish such an alliance.
The Philippines, and countries in central and eastern Europe are also Taiwan’s important potential drone cooperation partners, he said, adding that if Taiwan has collaboration with the Philippines, it would align with the US’ suggestion for joint development and production, while Taipei can also push forward its coprosperity project.
Taiwan has allocated a budget for such projects, Lin said.
After a drone supply chain is formed, Taiwan and its allies would have an edge over neighboring countries in terms of talent, technology, funding and big data artificial intelligence application, he said.
It would also demonstrate that “being friends with Taiwan not only prospers their [partners’] economy, but also makes them feel proud of being an ally of Taiwan,” he added.
The MOFA is mulling setting up an international drone academy and an international drone pilot alliance, as well as hold international drone pilot competitions, Lin said.
Drones also need maintenance and repair, so the government could also establish a scholarship program for talents from Taiwan’s diplomatic allies, he added.
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical