Taiwan’s Drone Diplomacy Task Force is to lead a delegation to attend XPONENTIAL 2026 in Detroit, Michigan, next month, while its International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program has added “drone pilots” to the specialties for recruitment this year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
Department of NGO International Affairs Director Chiang Zhen-wei (江振瑋), who is also head of the Drone Diplomacy Task Force, said the ministry has been focusing on “integrated diplomacy,” which includes leveraging public-private partnerships to promote Taiwan on the international stage.
The task force would lead a delegation to XPONENTIAL, the world’s largest international exhibition for uncrewed vehicle systems, to meet those goals, as well as further bolster Taiwan’s competitiveness in the drone industry, while deepening strategic partnerships with like-minded countries, he said.
Photo: Huang Chin-hsuan, Taipei Times
The ministry aims to continue to promote Taiwan as a democratic hub for the drone supply chain in Asia, Chiang said.
The task force last month led a delegation to XPONENTIAL Europe and has inquired about holding the major exhibition in Taiwan, he said.
XPONENTIAL is the most iconic global event for the drone industry, offering business-matching opportunities for Taiwanese drone companies that could help Taiwan establish key strategic advantages in the global supply chains, he said.
Meanwhile, this year’s International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program last month opened for applications.
For the first time, it included “technology application” in the specialties for recruitment, aiming to enlist young drone pilots, Chiang said.
By combining young people’s foreign-language proficiency, cultural creativity and technological expertise, the program aims to deepen bilateral youth exchanges with Taiwan’s allies, he said.
Youth ambassadors recruited through the program would set out in groups from August to visit Taiwan’s allies in the Asia-Pacific and Caribbean regions, such as Palau, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Saint Kitts and Nevis, he added.
The ministry plans to recruit 50 students in two groups to serve as this year’s International Youth Ambassadors, Chiang said.
Interested students aged 35 or younger who hold Taiwanese citizenship and are enrolled in a college, university or graduate institution in Taiwan are welcome to apply before the May 15 deadline, he said.
Since the International Youth Ambassadors Exchange Program was first initiated in 2009, more than 1,900 students have been recruited, he said.
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