Trump Unleashes Arms Deal Blitz, Ties India Closer to Dollar Power

Paul Riverbank, 2/7/2026Trump’s new arms and trade moves aim to cement US power and dollar dominance with India.

President Donald Trump, seldom subtle, issued a sweeping executive order on foreign arms sales just days ago. Despite its relatively quiet debut outside the Beltway, the order’s intent rang out for those paying attention: Allies deemed essential to America’s security will find the front of the line, while the rest—well, they might want to check their spot. U.S. defense sales, topping $300 billion a year, are being repurposed as tools for domestic industry and, crucially, for reinforcing America’s chosen partnerships. From the administration’s vantage point, the new rules are almost refreshingly direct: Streamlined approvals, less red tape for dependable friends, and a central task force to ensure neither time nor weapons slip through the cracks.

Not long ago, it was foreign buyers calling more of the shots. American factories sometimes prioritized export orders at the expense of domestic needs, a practice that led to costly bottlenecks and, ultimately, headaches for both allies and the Pentagon. The new approach turns that on its head. U.S. strategy, not simply customer demand, is set to drive what gets built—and how quickly.

Three agencies, notably Defense, State, and Commerce, now face instructions that border on military precision: expedite deals for trusted allies, tighten the leash on others, and keep Congress in the loop. Lawmakers support boosting shipments to key partners but are just as keen to ensure they know where, and how, those arms are put to use.

For businesses building those weapons, it’s a boon; for some buyer nations, however, the underlying message is hard to miss. If your priorities diverge from Washington’s, don’t expect speedy delivery—or any favors in the queue. Nobody’s naming names, but the intention needs little translation: Loyalty, in both defense posture and policy alignment, is now a precondition.

But weapons are just one side of the coin flipping through the halls of power. The lifeblood that runs beneath every deal is, as ever, cash—and in this case, the currency itself is a flashpoint.

Take the new U.S.-India trade agreement. Ostensibly, headlines focus on farm exports or tariff rows, but beneath the surface, both sides know the game is about something larger: the global ascent of currencies that aren’t the U.S. dollar. Recently, India collaborated with Europe to connect digital payment networks, making transactions in rupees and euros not only feasible, but easy. That, to some in D.C., is an early warning: As India grows its economic muscle alongside fellow Brics nations (Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, and a few new faces since 2023), there’s a visible push to lighten dependence on the greenback.

That shift unsettles American policymakers. Any example—India paying for oil in rupees, or Brics nations discussing an alternative, possibly gold-backed currency—sparks genuine anxiety about the dollar’s standing as the world reserve. Put simply, Washington sees this as a challenge to the long-established order.

Here’s where the India deal comes in. The agreement isn’t just a handshake over beef or soybeans. It’s a package designed, at least from the U.S. side, to tether India closer to dollar-based trade, even as New Delhi explores alternatives with Europe and Brics. India agreed to buy hundreds of billions worth of U.S. goods in technology, energy, and agriculture. In return, the United States cut tariffs and temporarily backed off on certain sanctions tied to India’s dealings with Russia. The choreography with the recent India-EU economic pact is hard to miss—the timing, the scale, the unspoken message: America wants India leaning westward, not toward alternative blocs or experimental currencies.

One Indian official, off the record as they often are in these matters, summed it up succinctly: “Our biggest leverage isn’t wheat or software, it’s how we handle the dollar.” For a country that straddles relationships with Russia, the EU, and the U.S., this is not just economic footwork—it’s diplomacy, currency, and politics rolled into one.

The White House doesn’t hide its hopes. By striking these trade and defense chords, the administration believes it can keep India—and others—anchored to the dollar’s network, fending off a slow shift toward fragmentation in the global currency landscape. Whether this can outpace the lure of an emerging multipolar economic world remains an open question.

Nothing in today’s environment happens in isolation. Europe, ever pragmatic, is steadily building direct trade bridges to India—routes that bypass the dollar entirely. Russia’s ongoing duel with the West pushes its own dollar alternatives. And China watches closely, never one to miss an opening in dollar rivalries or arms diplomacy.

Ultimately, what we’re seeing is less about spontaneous alliances and more about tactical containment. These are maneuvers—sometimes blunt, sometimes nuanced—meant to preserve the American hand at the international table. In every negotiation, whether it’s a weapon shipment crossing the Atlantic or a soybean cargo offloading in Mumbai, the core question is simple but consequential: Who gets to set the rules?

Washington, for all its divisions and deliberations, is making it clear where it stands. Right now, at least, the answer it wants—perhaps needs—is the same as it’s been for decades: the United States, front and center, still calling the shots. Whether the world keeps listening, of course, is another drama altogether.

Washington can be a noisy place, more so when the subject is who gets what—arms, market access, or the last word. The recent commotion over American arms exports and a fresh trade pact with India isn’t merely about tanks rolling off assembly lines or lists of tariffs negotiated in back rooms. At its heart, it’s old-world power theater playing out, with money and muscle as the starring acts.President Donald Trump, seldom subtle, issued a sweeping executive order on foreign arms sales just days ago. Despite its relatively quiet debut outside the Beltway, the order’s intent rang out for those paying attention: Allies deemed essential to America’s security will find the front of the line, while the rest—well, they might want to check their spot. U.S. defense sales, topping $300 billion a year, are being repurposed as tools for domestic industry and, crucially, for reinforcing America’s chosen partnerships. From the administration’s vantage point, the new rules are almost refreshingly direct: Streamlined approvals, less red tape for dependable friends, and a central task force to ensure neither time nor weapons slip through the cracks.Not long ago, it was foreign buyers calling more of the shots. American factories sometimes prioritized export orders at the expense of domestic needs, a practice that led to costly bottlenecks and, ultimately, headaches for both allies and the Pentagon. The new approach turns that on its head. U.S. strategy, not simply customer demand, is set to drive what gets built—and how quickly.Three agencies, notably Defense, State, and Commerce, now face instructions that border on military precision: expedite deals for trusted allies, tighten the leash on others, and keep Congress in the loop. Lawmakers support boosting shipments to key partners but are just as keen to ensure they know where, and how, those arms are put to use.For businesses building those weapons, it’s a boon; for some buyer nations, however, the underlying message is hard to miss. If your priorities diverge from Washington’s, don’t expect speedy delivery—or any favors in the queue. Nobody’s naming names, but the intention needs little translation: Loyalty, in both defense posture and policy alignment, is now a precondition.But weapons are just one side of the coin flipping through the halls of power. The lifeblood that runs beneath every deal is, as ever, cash—and in this case, the currency itself is a flashpoint.Take the new U.S.-India trade agreement. Ostensibly, headlines focus on farm exports or tariff rows, but beneath the surface, both sides know the game is about something larger: the global ascent of currencies that aren’t the U.S. dollar. Recently, India collaborated with Europe to connect digital payment networks, making transactions in rupees and euros not only feasible, but easy. That, to some in D.C., is an early warning: As India grows its economic muscle alongside fellow Brics nations (Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa, and a few new faces since 2023), there’s a visible push to lighten dependence on the greenback.That shift unsettles American policymakers. Any example—India paying for oil in rupees, or Brics nations discussing an alternative, possibly gold-backed currency—sparks genuine anxiety about the dollar’s standing as the world reserve. Put simply, Washington sees this as a challenge to the long-established order.Here’s where the India deal comes in. The agreement isn’t just a handshake over beef or soybeans. It’s a package designed, at least from the U.S. side, to tether India closer to dollar-based trade, even as New Delhi explores alternatives with Europe and Brics. India agreed to buy hundreds of billions worth of U.S. goods in technology, energy, and agriculture. In return, the United States cut tariffs and temporarily backed off on certain sanctions tied to India’s dealings with Russia. The choreography with the recent India-EU economic pact is hard to miss—the timing, the scale, the unspoken message: America wants India leaning westward, not toward alternative blocs or experimental currencies.One Indian official, off the record as they often are in these matters, summed it up succinctly: “Our biggest leverage isn’t wheat or software, it’s how we handle the dollar.” For a country that straddles relationships with Russia, the EU, and the U.S., this is not just economic footwork—it’s diplomacy, currency, and politics rolled into one.The White House doesn’t hide its hopes. By striking these trade and defense chords, the administration believes it can keep India—and others—anchored to the dollar’s network, fending off a slow shift toward fragmentation in the global currency landscape. Whether this can outpace the lure of an emerging multipolar economic world remains an open question.Nothing in today’s environment happens in isolation. Europe, ever pragmatic, is steadily building direct trade bridges to India—routes that bypass the dollar entirely. Russia’s ongoing duel with the West pushes its own dollar alternatives. And China watches closely, never one to miss an opening in dollar rivalries or arms diplomacy.Ultimately, what we’re seeing is less about spontaneous alliances and more about tactical containment. These are maneuvers—sometimes blunt, sometimes nuanced—meant to preserve the American hand at the international table. In every negotiation, whether it’s a weapon shipment crossing the Atlantic or a soybean cargo offloading in Mumbai, the core question is simple but consequential: Who gets to set the rules?Washington, for all its divisions and deliberations, is making it clear where it stands. Right now, at least, the answer it wants—perhaps needs—is the same as it’s been for decades: the United States, front and center, still calling the shots. Whether the world keeps listening, of course, is another drama altogether.