DistantNews
Support us
🇹🇼 Taiwan /Technology

Taiwan certified as 'Green Drone' assessor; US already buys MIT drones, expert says

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

Interview Named sources Context piece
  • Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has been certified as the only "Green UAS" assessment body outside the United States, marking a milestone in US-Taiwan cooperation.
  • This certification provides Taiwan with a domestic fast track to obtain "Blue UAS" certification from the US Department of Defense, which has already begun procuring "Made in Taiwan" (MIT) drones.
  • The CEO of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) suggested a trilateral summit between the US, Taiwan, and Ukraine on drones later this year.

Taiwan has achieved a significant milestone in its defense technology cooperation with the United States, as the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has been officially certified as the sole "Green UAS" assessment body outside the U.S. This development provides a crucial domestic pathway for Taiwanese drone manufacturers seeking U.S. military procurement.

This represents that Taiwan has a domestic fast track to further obtain the "Blue UAS" certification from the U.S. Department of Defense.

— Michael RobbinsExplaining the significance of ITRI's certification as a Green UAS assessment body.

Michael Robbins, CEO of the Association of Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), confirmed that the U.S. military is already purchasing "Made in Taiwan" (MIT) drones. The "Green UAS" certification, a commercial standard managed by AUVSI, offers a direct route to the U.S. Department of Defense's "Blue UAS" government standard. Taiwanese companies meeting the Green UAS criteria, after undergoing multi-stage reviews for foreign ownership, cybersecurity, and supply chain integrity, can be exempted from certain Federal Communications Commission (FCC) restrictions and become eligible to sell to the U.S. military.

Robbins also advised Taiwanese policymakers to implement the "non-red, non-CCP" supply chain standard for domestic defense tenders, moving beyond self-declaration to actual cybersecurity and supply chain audits by neutral third parties like ITRI. He praised Taiwan's strong engineering capabilities and manufacturing capacity, which allow for scalable production at competitive costs.

The U.S. military is already purchasing "Made in Taiwan" (MIT) drones.

— Michael RobbinsConfirming the current procurement of Taiwanese-made drones by the U.S. military.

Looking ahead, Robbins proposed a "US-Taiwan-Ukraine" trilateral summit on drones to be held in Taiwan later this year. He highlighted the significant roles of the U.S., Ukraine, and Taiwan as major players in the global drone industry, excluding China, and expressed hope that such a meeting would foster collaboration and identify shared paths forward.

I hope that we can bring these three parties together, focus on their respective advantages, and find paths for cooperation and mutual progress.

— Michael RobbinsProposing a trilateral summit between the US, Taiwan, and Ukraine on drones.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog