US President Donald Trump signed two documents imposing new tariffs on drones and their components and ordering the US Navy to replace advanced electromagnetic systems for launching aircraft and raising aircraft carrier weapons with traditional steam and hydraulic systems.
According to the White House, Trump has ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegsett to replace advanced electromagnetic systems with traditional steam and hydraulic systems because he believes permanent solutions are too expensive and too complicated, ABC reported.
The second directive instructed Hegseth to establish a fifth naval shipyard and to allow foreign shipbuilders to build American warships, under certain conditions.
The tariffs will take effect 21 days after the documents are signed, while duties on some less sensitive drone components will take effect 180 days later.
According to the White House, the tariff will be 100 percent for particularly sensitive drones, 25 percent for smaller drones that are assessed to pose a less immediate security risk, while a 15 percent tariff will be imposed on certain drones and components from the European Union, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Switzerland and the Chinese Region of Taiwan.