Pakistan buys drones from Trump-backed firm that sold to India — SkimNews
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- Powerus received a "limited procurement order" from Pakistan's Ministry of Defence and signed an MoU with the Pakistan army following a September 16 meeting at Rawalpindi headquarters with military chief Field Marshal Asim Munir.
- The Florida-based, year-old drone company — backed by Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump through American Ventures (expected 9.9% stake in the merged entity) — had in June granted Indian manufacturer Paras Defence and Space Technologies exclusive rights to manufacture and sell its Guardian-1 interceptor technology in India.
- Powerus co-founder Ziv Marom is an Israeli military veteran, and vice president Justin Gans previously served at Elbit Systems of America from 2018 to 2019; Pakistan does not recognize Israel and has accused it of genocide in Gaza.
- Pakistan already operates Turkish Bayraktar TB2 and Akinci drones, Chinese Wing Loong II, and the domestically developed Shahpar-II, with China supplying 80% of Pakistan's arms imports from 2021 to 2025 according to SIPRI — leaving analysts asking what gap Powerus actually fills.
- Powerus produces about 3,000 interceptor drones a month, won a US Air Force contract with a ceiling of up to $90 million last month, and is set to merge with Nasdaq-listed Aureus Greenway Holdings in the final quarter of this year.
- The White House says there are no conflicts of interest; a spokesperson for Donald Trump Jr said he is a passive investor with no role in operations and no prior knowledge of the Pakistan deals.
- Analysts cited US precedent for arming rival states — F-16s sold to both Greece and Turkiye, and to both Egypt and Israel, plus F-35s to Saudi Arabia — while a retired Pakistani air marshal warned of "pitfalls" when two adversaries procure from the same supplier.
Why it matters: Pakistan, a country that does not recognize Israel and fought a brief drone-intensive war with India in May 2025, is now buying interceptor drones from a firm co-founded by an Israeli veteran that licensed the same technology to Pakistan's rival three months earlier. The White House calls it no conflict, but Pakistan's defence analysts say it's unclear why Islamabad turned to a one-year-old US firm when it has mature domestic, Turkish, and Chinese drone supply chains already in service.
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