TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan thanked the U.S. for approving the potential sale of kamikaze drones on Tuesday (June 18).

The U.S. government formally notified Congress about its plan to sell Switchblade 300 anti-personnel loitering missile systems and ALTIUS 600M-V anti-armor UAVs to Taiwan for US$360.2 million (NT$11.65 billion), according to the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency. Taiwan requested to purchase 720 Switchblade drones and up to 291 ALTIUS UAVs along with related equipment and logistics support.

Presidential Office Spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said Taiwan is grateful to the U.S. for continuing to bolster the bilateral partnership and helping to safeguard regional peace and stability. The Switchblade and Alitus suicide drone “will help meet our military’s defensive operation and combat readiness training requirements,” Kuo said. 

She added the sale is a demonstration of the importance the U.S. government places on peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. This is the 15th military sale to Taiwan under the Biden administration.

Tuesday's arms sale announcement comes as Taiwan is building up its arsenal of missiles to counter a Chinese invasion. On Monday (June 17), Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said Taiwan is set to receive all shipments of TOW 2B anti-tank missiles it purchased from the U.S. by the end of 2024. The military ordered 1,700 TOW missiles and 100 launchers in 2015 that were scheduled for delivery in 2022 but did not receive any of them.