PINGTUNG, Taiwan — Taiwan’s armed forces completed a three-day joint precision-munitions live-fire exercise at the Jiupeng training area in Pingtung County from September 16 to 18, 2026. The drills marked the first time multiple types of attack drones were integrated into joint combat operations involving the Army, Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard.
President Lai Ching-te inspected the exercise on September 18. He said the integration of several types of attack drones with conventional weapons showed that Taiwan’s military was accelerating efforts to strengthen its overall combat capabilities. He also said the exercise demonstrated Taiwan’s ability to defend its sovereignty and contribute to regional peace and stability.
Joint Kill Chain
The forces practiced a complete “find-fix-finish” kill chain, using shipborne radars, Air Force battle-management systems, mobile radar vehicles, drones and a battlefield network to detect, identify and allocate targets before carrying out precision strikes.
The exercise covered joint air defense, counter-strike operations, sea-air coordination, coastal strikes and nearshore defense under conditions linked to Taiwan’s defense plans.
Weapons and systems involved included the U.S.-supplied M142 HIMARS, Hsiung Feng II and Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles, Tien Kung III surface-to-air missiles, Land Sword II, and Patriot systems.
Reports also identified Switchblade drones, Altius 600M loitering munitions and Taiwan’s indigenous Chien Hsiang loitering munition among the unmanned systems involved. However, Taiwan’s official statements did not provide a complete list of the drone types.
A decommissioned frigate, Lan Yang, was used as a maritime target during part of the exercise, while Coast Guard vessels participated in training for wartime joint operations.
Chinese Military Activity
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense also reported Chinese military activity during the exercise. It said a Chinese military drone flew from Taiwan’s southwestern airspace toward waters off Taitung between about 12:05 a.m. and 6 a.m. on September 18 to monitor the exercise. Taiwanese forces tracked the aircraft using aircraft, ships and land-based systems.
Trump-Xi Meeting
The exercise took place days before the scheduled September 24 meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington.
Taiwan continues to receive U.S. arms under Washington’s commitments to help the island maintain a sufficient self-defense capability. Beijing continues to claim Taiwan as part of its territory and opposes U.S. arms sales to Taipei.
The Jiupeng exercise demonstrated Taiwan’s ongoing effort to integrate unmanned systems with conventional precision-strike weapons and improve joint command-and-control among its military services.
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