President Donald Trump signed two proclamations on Thursday — one imposing tariffs on drones, and another ordering the Navy to restore older technology on aircraft carriers and allowing for American warships to be built in foreign shipyards on a limited basis.
According to a fact sheet published by the White House, one of the memorandums directs Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “replace the Advanced Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch Systems and the Advanced Weapons Elevators with traditional steam and hydraulic systems.”
Trump has previously called for the return of steam over electric catapults on American aircraft carriers.
“Pete, we’re not letting any more ships be built with the ridiculous — billions of dollars more they spent on, uh, electric catapults and they’re not good. They’re not nearly as good, too complex,” Trump said last month during a Defense and Innovation Summit at the Army War College.
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington sails in the South China Sea, Aug. 11, 2026.
US Navy
The memo also directs Hegseth to establish a fifth Naval shipyard and to allow foreign shipbuilders to build American warships.
“As foreign shipbuilders make substantial and durable investments into America’s shipyards and train an all-American workforce for the jobs they create, they will be temporarily permitted to build up to two ships in their parent shipyards that will be delivered to bridge gaps on a quick turnaround, while additional ships will be built in revitalized American shipyards,” the White House factsheet read.
In another proclamation, Trump is slapping “ad valorem” tariffs on drones and drone parts, citing the “national security threat” posed by such devices.
The tariff is set to take effect 21 days after signing. The tariffs on drone components that are “not particularly sensitive” will take effect 180 days after signing.
According to a fact sheet released by the White House, this includes a 100% tariff on “particularly sensitive” drones, as well as a 25% tariff on those that are smaller in size with less pressing security concerns. The proclamation also imposes a 15% tariff on drones and components from the European Union, Japan, Liechtenstein, the Republic of Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan, as well as a 10% tariff on some drones from the United Kingdom.
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