Cabinet proposes US$6.6 billion special budget for domestic drones

Taipei, June 18 (CNA) Taiwan's Cabinet on Thursday proposed a special budget bill totaling NT$210 billion (US$6.6 billion) over six years for the procurement of domestically produced drones, to offset funding removed from an earlier defense spending bill by opposition parties.

The special budget -- which uses a funding mechanism that bypasses normal budget planning procedures to ensure timely and sustained implementation -- was proposed by the Ministry of National Defense (MND).

It would cover the procurement of 1,446 coastal reconnaissance drones, 208,200 coastal attack drones and 1,320 unmanned surface vessels, Huang Wen-chi (黃文啟), head of the MND's Department of Strategic Planning, told a weekly Cabinet news conference.

The proposed budget would run from August 2026 through the end of 2031.

The special budget was proposed after funding for domestic drone procurement was removed from an NT$1.25 trillion special defense budget bill by the Legislature last month, creating a gap in defense capabilities and limiting opportunities to promote economic growth, MND official Weng Yu-heng (翁予恒) said.

The opposition Kuomintang and the Taiwan People's Party, which together hold a majority in the Legislature, passed an alternative version of the special defense budget with a spending cap of NT$780 billion, removing funding for domestic contract production, foreign direct commercial sales and Taiwan-U.S. weapons co-development.

Weng said the latest bill, which also requires legislative approval before it can take effect, would allow the MND to place large long-term orders with local defense contractors and support innovation, enabling them to keep pace with rapidly evolving drone technology.

The three types of unmanned systems would be deployed alongside other firepower assets to conduct saturation attacks against enemy command nodes and lines of communication during the amphibious landing phase of a potential invasion, he said.

During a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) instructed the MND to proactively communicate with all legislative caucuses regarding the proposal, which is both "urgent" and "necessary" for safeguarding Taiwan's security, Cabinet spokesperson Michelle Lee (李慧芝) said.