Photo: 24 ОМБр імені короля Данила/Facebook
President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States would impose tariffs on imported drones and drone components, including products from some key U.S. allies. The Trump administration said the move is aimed at reducing the country’s dependence on foreign drone suppliers, Reuters reports.
Under a proclamation signed by Trump, a 100% ad valorem tariff will apply to drones of certain sizes or with characteristics considered particularly sensitive to U.S. national security. Smaller drones will face a 25% tariff.
Drones and components imported from the European Union, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Switzerland and Taiwan will be subject to a 15% tariff, while imports from the United Kingdom will face a 10% tariff.
Trump said Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had conducted an investigation into the impact of imports of unmanned aircraft systems, or drones, on the U.S. market.
Lutnick concluded that foreign manufacturers account for a significant share of the U.S. drone market and that the country is overly dependent on foreign sources for unmanned aircraft systems and their components, Trump said.
According to the president, the investigation also found that drones and components produced by certain foreign companies pose security risks, while the U.S. industrial base does not currently produce enough of these systems to meet the country's national security needs.
The tariffs will take effect 21 days after the proclamation is signed.
For drone components that are not considered particularly sensitive to national security, the tariffs will take effect 180 days after the proclamation.
The same 180-day period will apply to products for which the Pentagon approves an exemption from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's list within 20 days of the proclamation being signed.
The Pentagon plans to allocate $75 billion to drones and counter-drone systems. However, despite the scale of the planned investment, the U.S. defense industry is still building up its domestic production capacity. Pentagon official Travis Metz acknowledged that the United States currently produces only a fraction of the number of drones manufactured by Ukraine.
The move reflects Washington's growing view of drone technology as a strategic and national security priority, while the United States seeks to reduce its reliance on foreign supply chains and rapidly expand domestic drone production.
