US, Taiwan, Japan drone fleets to share real-time information, FT reports
PHOTO CAPTION: U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Samuel Richard, an unmanned aircraft systems operator with Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3 remotely pilots a simulated MQ-9 during an annual Naval Air Training and Operating Procedures and Standardization program evaluation, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Jan. 25, 2023. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Brandon Aultman via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)
(Reuters) - U.S., Taiwanese and Japanese forces will share real-time data from reconnaissancedrones to strengthen coordination, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the project.
Late in the Trump presidency, the U.S. announced more than $5 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, including four aerial drones worth $600 million, meant to upgrade the island's capabilities and discourage a Chinese invasion.
The FT said Washington would allow those aircraft to integrate into the system that U.S. forces in the region and the Japanese Self-Defense Force will use.
The report added that this would enable the U.S. and its partners to simultaneously observe all the information gathered by the unmanned aerial vehicles.
(Reporting by Bharat Govind Gautam in Bengaluru; Editing by Himani Sarkar)