Trump issues executive orders addressing DEI policies, covid expulsions, and transgender troops

Washington: US President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders on Monday to remove diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) from the military, reinstate thousands of troops who were kicked out for refusing Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic and take aim at transgender troops.

Earlier on Monday, Pete Hegseth, who narrowly secured enough votes to become defence secretary, referred to the names of Confederate generals that were once used for two key bases during his remarks to reporters as he entered the Pentagon on his first full day on the job.

Trump signed the executive orders while flying back from Miami to Washington DC.

One of the executive orders signed by Trump said that expressing a “gender identity” different from an individual’s sex at birth did not meet military standards.

While the order banned the use of “invented” pronouns in the military, it did not answer basic questions, including whether transgender soldiers currently serving in the military would be allowed to stay and, if not, how they would be removed.

Trump’s plans have been heavily criticised by advocacy groups, which say his actions would be illegal.

“President Trump has made clear that a key priority for his administration is driving transgender people back into the closet and out of public life altogether,” Joshua Block, with the American Civil Liberties Union, said earlier on Monday.

During his first term, Trump announced that he would ban transgender troops from serving in the military. He did not fully follow through with that ban — his administration froze their recruitment while allowing serving personnel to remain.

Biden overturned the decision when he took office in 2021.

The military has about 1.3 million active-duty personnel, Department of Defence data shows. While transgender rights advocates say there are as many as 15,000 transgender service members, officials say the number is in the low thousands.

When Trump announced his first ban in 2017, he said the military needed to focus on “decisive and overwhelming victory” without being burdened by the “tremendous medical costs and disruption” of having transgender personnel.

 

Internal focus

 

Hegseth has promised to bring major changes to the Pentagon and has made eliminating DEI from the military a top priority.

Trump’s executive order on ending DEI in the military said service academies would be required to teach “that America and its founding documents remain the most powerful force for good in human history”.

The US Air Force said on Sunday that it would resume instruction of trainees using a video about the first Black airmen in the US military, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, which has passed a review to ensure compliance with Trump’s ban on DEI initiatives.

Hegseth was warmly greeted on the steps of the Pentagon by the top US military officer, Air Force General CQ Brown, whom Hegseth criticised in his latest book. Asked if he might fire Brown, Hegseth joked that he was standing right next to him.

“I’m standing with him right now. I look forward to working with him,” as he patted Brown on the back.

Reuters has previously reported about the possibility of mass firing among top brass, something Hegseth repeatedly refused to rule out during his confirmation process.

Hegseth referred to Fort Moore and Fort Liberty by their previous names, Fort Benning and Fort Bragg, while speaking with reporters.

The names honouring Confederate officers were changed under former president Joe Biden as part of an effort to reexamine US history and the Confederate legacy.

“I’m thinking about the guys and gals in Guam, Germany, Fort Benning and Fort Bragg,” Hegseth said.

Much of Hegseth’s focus at the Pentagon could be internal to the military, including making good on Trump’s executive order on bringing back troops discharged for refusing Covid vaccines.

Thousands of service members were removed from the military after the Pentagon made the vaccine mandatory in 2021.

 

Missile defence for US

 

Trump also signed an executive order that “mandated a process to develop an American Iron Dome”.

The short-range Iron Dome air defence system was built by Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence Systems with US backing and was built to intercept rockets fired towards Israel.

Each truck-towed unit fires radar-guided missiles to blow up short-range threats such as rockets, mortars and drones in midair.

The system determines whether a rocket is on course to hit a populated area. If not, the rocket is ignored and allowed to land harmlessly. Any such effort would take years to implement in the United States.

Separately, the White House said Trump stressed the importance of India buying more American-made security equipment and moving toward a fair bilateral trading relationship in a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.

Trump later himself told reporters they also spoke about the issue of immigration and that Modi will visit the US sometime in February. The White House said earlier that plans for a Modi visit were discussed by the two leaders.

In what the White House called a “productive call”, the leaders discussed expanding and deepening cooperation and issues, including security in the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Europe.

Reuters reported last week that Indian and US diplomats are trying to arrange a meeting of the leaders as early as February.

Trump and Modi enjoyed warm relations in the US president’s first term, but during his re-election campaign, Trump called India a “very big abuser” of trade and vowed to use tariffs on global imports into the US to correct imbalances.

Trump has also threatened the Brics group of nations, of which India is a part, with tariffs if they did not accept his demand of committing to not create a new currency.

In Monday’s call, Trump “emphasised the importance of India increasing its procurement of American-made security equipment and moving toward a fair bilateral trading relationship”, a White House statement said.

The US is India’s largest trading partner and two-way trade surpassed $118 billion in 2023/24, with India posting a surplus of $32bn.

India is also an important strategic partner in US efforts to counter China, and in a social media post on Monday, Modi called Trump a “dear friend” and said they were “committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership”.

“We will work together for the welfare of our people and towards global peace, prosperity, and security,” Modi said.

An Indian statement said the leaders discussed technology, trade, investment, energy and defence and “agreed to remain in touch and meet soon at an early mutually convenient date”.

The White House said Trump and Modi emphasised their commitment to the Quad grouping that brings together the United States and India with Australia and Japan, with India to host Quad leaders later this year.

Tanvi Madan, an India expert at Washington’s Brookings Institution, said it appeared likely Modi would visit Washington soon, with Trump reciprocating by attending the Quad summit.

“Trade and immigration issues are clearly on the Trump administration’s agenda when it comes to India,” she said. “Its impact will depend in part on India’s response to Trump’s asks, but also how the broader debate on those issues plays out in Washington.”

Madan said India would be hoping for a changed US posture towards India’s close relations with Russia, but for the time being, would have to contend with US sanctions on Moscow over the Ukraine war.

Trump told reporters on Monday that Modi “will do what’s right” when it comes to taking back Indian immigrants who came to the US illegally.

In a meeting with India’s foreign minister last week, Trump’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasised a desire to “address concerns related to irregular migration”.

Trump has pledged to crack down on illegal immigration and Bloomberg News reported last week that India and the US have identified some 18,000 Indian migrants who are in the US illegally.

Trump has said he is open to legal migration of skilled workers and India is known for its massive pool of IT professionals, many of whom work across the world. They account for the bulk of the skilled worker H-1B visas issued by the United States.

The US readouts this week and last made no mention of Washington’s accusations of Indian involvement in a foiled murder plot on US soil against a Sikh separatist that were an awkward factor in relations in the latter part of the Biden administration.