Taiwan’s opposition-controlled parliament rejected on Thursday a T$210 billion ($6.6 billion) ‌government plan for a special budget to buy new military drones and passed their own plan instead, which sets annual spending at T$40 billion. The government said its plan, to run until 2031, to buy about 210,000 drones, could not wait, as the wars in Ukraine and Iran ​showed the importance of uncrewed weapons in modern warfare amid a rising threat from China, which sees ​the island as its own territory. But the opposition voted through its own proposals, which amount ⁠to T$240 billion over six years, drawn from the annual budget, with annual spending set at T$40 billion in ​principle, though it can be increased if needed. Asked by reporters at parliament after the vote whether he would sign the ​legislation into law, Premier Cho Jung-tai said the question was not whether the government was satisfied.

Full report : Taiwan parliament rejects government military drone plan, passes own version.