Taiwan holds first joint military drills using attack drones ahead of Trump-Xi summit

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan conducted military drills featuring missiles and drones on Friday ahead of the summit next week in the U.S. between President Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping in which the fate of the self-ruled island will be discussed.

China claims Taiwan, a self-governing democracy, as its own breakaway province and hasn’t renounced the use of force to bring it under its control. Beijing has pushed Trump to take a stronger stance opposing Taiwan’s independence. The leaders of the U.S. and China are set to meet on Sept. 24 for the first time since May.

Taiwan’s military drills included for the first time joint combat exercises featuring multiple types of attack drones. President Lai Ching-te said the drills showcased the Taiwanese army’s modernization.

“The coordinated use of unmanned vehicles with conventional weapons reflects the adaptation to modern warfare,” he said, according to a statement released by his office.

The statement did not specify what types of drones were being tested in the southern Pingtung county. The military also launched multiple anti-air, anti-ship and anti-landing missiles as part of the exercises.

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Taiwan has increased its military spending in recent years. The island relies on arms purchases from the United States, which is bound by its own laws to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

U.S. arms sales to Taiwan have been at the center of talks between Trump and Xi. After their last summit in May, Trump postponed a planned $14 billion arms package to Taiwan, fueling doubts about the U.S. commitment to the island. Trump called the arms sales a “very good negotiating chip” with China.

Taiwan’s army will continue staging drills next week, including newly bought U.S.-made HIMARS rocket systems and Stinger missile simulators among other types of equipment.