Drone makers from Taiwan, Lithuania sign 2 MOUs

Vilnius, Lithuania, Nov. 22 (CNA) Taiwanese drone companies have expanded their reach into the European market by signing two memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with Lithuania to enhance collaboration in the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) industry.

The MOUs were signed on Thursday during the Drone Industry Business Forum in Vilnius by a representative from the Lithuanian Defence and Security Industry Association and Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. (AIDC) Chairman Hu Kai-hung (胡開宏), who inked the two pacts as representative of a Taiwanese drone industry delegation and the Taiwan Defense Industry Development Association.

The Lithuanian group is now the fourth international partner of the Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance (TEDIBOA), a government-supported Taiwanese drone supply chain alliance with over 50 members established in September and headed by Hu.

Taiwan's Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) as well as Wang Ting-yu (王定宇), convener of the Legislature's Foreign and National Defense Committee, and Lithuania's Vice Minister of National Defence Monika Koroliovienė were present at the signing ceremony.

In their speeches, Lin and Koroliovienė emphasized the democratic values shared by the two countries, describing them as a solid foundation for bilateral cooperation.

These two MOUs marked Hu's third and fourth agreements signed within a week, following the one with the Polish-Taiwanese Chamber of Industry and Commerce on Nov. 15 and another with the Latvian Federation of Defence and Security Industries in Riga on Tuesday.

Hu signed all but one of the agreements as head of the TEDIBOA. The alliance targets the growing drone market, driven by increasing geopolitical tensions, particularly after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

According to TrendForce, a Taiwanese market research firm, the global military drone market is projected to grow from US$16.5 billion in 2022 to US$34.3 billion by 2025.

The Vilnius forum brought together about 20 Taiwanese drone manufacturers and 40 firms from Lithuania and Ukraine, including LTMiLTech, whose products have been deployed in the war between Kyiv and Moscow.

Andrius Guzaitis, a manager at LTMiLTech, told CNA that his company is seeking international supply chains for components and had sent personnel to Taiwan earlier this year. He expressed optimism about collaborating more closely with Taiwanese manufacturers.

Meanwhile, Valdas Macys, representing another Lithuanian drone company, noted that the global market is increasingly cautious about using drones made with Chinese components. He highlighted Taiwan's democratic values and advanced technologies as competitive advantages in this space.

At the forum, lawmaker Wang Ting-yu revealed that Taiwan is developing mine-detection drones, which could support Ukraine's efforts against Russia in the future.