The U.S. on Tuesday approved the sale of $360 million worth of armed drones and loitering munitions to Taiwan as Washington doubles down on helping Taipei counter a potential Chinese attack on the self-ruled island.
The move reflects U.S. efforts to not only bolster Taiwan's asymmetric capabilities but also to use drone swarms to offset any Chinese military advantages in personnel and equipment in a possible conflict — a strategy also embraced by Taipei as it draws lessons from the war in Ukraine.
Announced by the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the potential sale, which must be approved by Congress, includes 291 warhead-equipped Altius-600M drones and 720 Switchblade 300 anti-personnel and anti-armor loitering munitions, marking the 15th arms package approved by U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration.