President Donald Trump orders prioritising countries with higher defense spending as customers for US weapons

By  News On Air   Feb 07, 2026

U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that would re-prioritise the customer list for U.S. weapons in favor of countries with higher defense spending and strategic importance in their region, the White House said yesterday. 

The executive order establishing the ‘America First Arms Transfer Strategy’ marks a significant shift in U.S. arms sales policy.

It directs federal agencies to prioritise foreign military sales to partners that have invested substantially in their own self-defense capabilities and occupy critical roles or geographies. 

The move is intended to accelerate delivery of U.S.-manufactured weapons to allies deemed essential for regional security, while leveraging foreign purchases to expand domestic production capacity. No countries were mentioned in the executive order.

The White House said in a fact sheet accompanying the order that future arms sales will prioritise American interests by using foreign purchases and capital to build American production and capacity. 

Under the new strategy, the Secretaries of Defense, State, and Commerce are tasked with developing a sales catalogue of prioritised platforms and systems and identifying opportunities for sales that align with the strategy’s objectives.