Reuters: U.S. to renegotiate strike drone deal, establish overseas deliveries

U.S. President Donald Trump may unilaterally change the 38-year-old arms control treaty to sell heavy attack drones such as Reaper abroad. Reuters reports Reuters, citing an unnamed U.S. official and four people familiar with the plan.

According to the official, the new policy will allow General Atomics, Kratos (KTOS.O) and Anduril, which produce large drones, to have their products considered "foreign military sales" by the State Department. This will allow them to sell drones abroad .

The U.S. official noted that the effort is the first part of a planned "extensive" review of the U.S. foreign military sales program. The State Department declined to comment .

Under the new plan, the United States could designate drones as aircraft, like the F-16, rather than missile systems. This would circumvent the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) agreement signed by 35 countries in 1987. After that, America will be able to sell drones to Eastern Europe or the Arab Emirates, which previously had difficulty obtaining the "best US UAVs.".

The current interpretation of the Agreement states that the sale of many military drones is subject to a "strong presumption of denial". That is, the buyer country must provide a compelling security reason for purchasing the drones and agree to use the weapons in strict accordance with international law .

According to a U.S. official, the new rules will allow the United States to become "a leading supplier of drones instead of ceding this space to Turkey and China.".

Today, the United States does not sell drones to a number of countries, including Ukraine. They fear that advanced technologies could fall into enemy hands.

According to the unnamed sources, the exact date of the publication of the new rules for the sale of drones has not yet been determined. It was previously expected that the foreign military sales program would be revised in 2025, and the administration is now working on its "implementation.".

• Fox News reported that Trump will sign an executive order on September 5 to rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War. Pete Hagesse will be given the title "Secretary of War.".