U.S. Reinstitutes 2018 Arms Trade Policy

May 2025

U.S. President Donald Trump instructed the departments of State and Defense to resume implementation of the Conventional Arms Trade policy developed in his first term in office.

Trump’s April 9 executive order comes shortly after the president repealed the arms transfers policy promulgated in February 2023 by the Biden administration. (See ACT, April 2025.)

The Biden-era policy prohibited arms transfers to foreign states if U.S. officials determined that it is “more likely than not” that they would be used in committing genocide, crimes against humanity, grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions of 1949, or other serious violations of international humanitarian or human rights law. (See ACT, April and May 2023.)

The older Trump policy from 2018, now once again in force, only prohibits an arms transfer if a U.S. official has “actual knowledge” of a likely misuse.

The April 9 order also instructs the executive branch to evaluate changes to restrictions imposed in compliance with the Missile Technology Control Regime, suggest to Congress a change in the threshold above which arms transfers must be notified to legislators under the Arms Export Control Act, and conduct a review of defense items controlled on the U.S. Munitions List.

Although the order adopts a goal of creating a “rapid and transparent” arms sales system, its instructions make clear that transparency is intended to benefit foreign customers. To that end, the departments of State, Defense, and Commerce have been given 90 days to develop a plan for “metrics for accountability” in processing arms sales.

The same departments have also been tasked with creating a plan for introducing “exportability” as a requirement in defense acquisition planning.—XIAODON LIANG