We will shoot down your drones, Taiwan warns China

Beijing drones crossing into the island’s air defence identification zone will be considered the first shot, the Taiwanese parliament was told.

The Taiwanese military has ‘been showing great restraint not to fire any shots’ at Chinese drones. Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense/AFP/Getty Images/The Times

Taiwan has threatened to shoot down any Chinese drones that approach its airspace, suggesting that by deploying them Beijing would be firing “the first shot” in a future conflict over the island’s sovereignty.

“We will first sound warnings and lock the target before it approaches the island,” Chiu Kuo-cheng, the defence minister, told the Taiwanese parliament. “If the aircraft should ignore the warning, Taiwan must defend itself.”

He added: “Given there is the first shot, we must respond, and a war will be declared after the counter-attack.”

When asked again if it meant war would be declared, Chiu responded: “Yes, and the situation will be very grave.”

His comments come after China’s People’s Liberation Army flew drones for the first time over Taiwanese territory this year, as part of military exercises launched in response to a visit by Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, to Taipei.

Beijing considers Taiwan part of Chinese territory and vows to seize it by force if necessary to achieve unification, indispensable to President Xi Jinping’s goal of national rejuvenation by 2050.

A Chinese drone flew over and filmed Taiwanese soldiers at their post. Picture: The Times

Since Pelosi’s visit, Chinese civilian drones have flown over Taiwan’s outlying Kinmen islands, while its military drones breached the median line and flew into Taiwan’s air defence identification zone.

“In the past, the first shot was defined as attacking with missiles and artillery shells, but now drones are frequently crossing the line without any provocation, causing great distress, so we will consider drones and aircraft as the first shot,” Chiu said.

“Both sides are adjusting. It’s not any drastic change.”

Analysts say Beijing is unlikely to attack the island in the near future, but it is believed that China is learning from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and trying to develop “hybrid warfare” strategies by using drones and psychological pressure as well as conventional force.

Taiwan also is studying the Ukraine war to prepare itself for any armed attack, including how it might mobilise its population and rally global support.

The Times