Aerospace Industrial Development Corp (AIDC) on Friday received an Estonian delegation at its drone production line, with aspirations to deepen cooperation with the Baltic country.
The delegation was led by Estonian lawmaker Kristo Enn Vaga, chairman of the Estonia-Taiwan Support Group of the Parliament of Estonia, and included lawmaker and former minister of defense Kalle Laanet as well as representatives of several Estonian defense industry companies, Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance (TEDIBOA) said in a news release on Saturday.
AIDC chairman Hu Kai-hung (胡開宏), who heads the drone alliance, said that Estonia is competitive in many fields, including digital technology, drone applications and defense technology.
Photo courtesy of the Aerospace Industrial Development Corp via CNA
Coupled with Taiwan’s drone supply chain, cooperation between the two countries would create synergy, he said.
The alliance said that while Estonia is far from Taiwan, the two countries share a similar experience in democratic development and therefore share ideas on the importance of constructing a democratic supply chain.
The TEDIBOA was established by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in September last year and has more than 160 members.
The alliance combines the specializations of each member and integrates the whole drone supply chain from upstream to downstream operations, with the goal of obtaining government-to-government orders, as well as constructing a domestic “non-red supply chain,” Hu said.
AIDC’s role in the alliance is counter-drone system development and to provide assistance on drone production, he said.
In an interview with local media on Wednesday, Vaga proposed closer cooperation between the Baltic state and Taiwan in defense technology, especially on drones.
If Taiwan chooses to work with Estonia, a member of the EU, it would also open the door for Taiwanese investments in the massive EU market, a relatively unfamiliar territory for Taiwan, he said.
Cooperation in drones could also help Taiwan deal with undersea cable damage incidents that have occurred over the past few years, a phenomenon also detected in Estonia, he said.
Last month, a Chinese-owned cargo vessel allegedly damaged an undersea cable near its northeastern coast in what is believed to be an act of sabotage.
Taiwan also reported undersea cable damage in February 2023 when two cables between Taiwan and the outlying Matsu islands were severed, with the Internet cut off for more than 50 days.
Although China has denied involvement in these incidents, they highlighted the vulnerability of the nation’s offshore communications infrastructure.
Similar incidents have also been reported in Estonia.
NATO has said it would enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea, with Estonia sending a patrol ship to protect its Estlink1 undersea power cable, after Russia allegedly damaged its main power link in the Gulf of Finland in December last year. The Kremlin has denied involvement in the incident.
Vaga said his country is certain that at least some of the undersea cable incidents near Estonia and around Europe were acts of sabotage by Russia, although it could take more time and evidence to determine legal responsibility.
Democracies like Estonia and Taiwan need to be very decisive in countering such acts of sabotage, he said.
This is also where both sides can join forces including by using underwater drones as countermeasure or building underwater sensor networks as a defense.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
RSS