TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan-made drones should not include parts made in China, Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) confirmed Wednesday after a report alleged Chinese components had been found inside an Albatross drone.

The Albatross, also known as the Chung Xiang II (銳鳶二型), is made by the Taichung-based National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology, one of Taiwan’s top arms producers. The Chinese items found were a communication module and an SD memory card, the Liberty Times reported.

Institute Director General Lee Shih-chiang (李世強) told lawmakers Wednesday the problem was discovered at an early stage, when parts were imported from overseas. The institute demanded the supplier replace the Chinese items with parts made in Taiwan according to the contract, he said. Mass production of the Albatross has not started yet, with testing and research still in progress, according to Lee.

The institute director general said that the arms maker could not send representatives overseas to inspect their manufacturing processes. As a result, it had to look closely at the products once they arrived in Taiwan.

Asked about the issue by lawmakers, Koo emphasized that weapon systems could not include Chinese-made parts. Defense contracts for drones specified that all components needed to originate with “non-red” or non-communist supply chains, he said. Koo hoped that all parts could be produced inside Taiwan, making checks easier.