The president of the United States on Saturday signed an executive order giving the Defense Department 30 days to present a strategy for defeating the Islamic State terrorist group.
Donald Trump also signed another order to reorganize the White House National Security Council, a forum the US president uses to address issues of national security and foreign policy with advisers and cabinet members.

The president signed a third order which bans administration officials from lobbying and puts in place a lifelong ban on officials lobbying for foreign countries.

After signing the order to defeat the IS, Trump said, “This is the plan to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (another name for the IS). I think it’s going to be very successful.”

“That’s big stuff,” the US leader told reporters after signing the executive orders, accompanied by his Vice President Mike Pence and other members of his government.

According to the document, the plan must include a “comprehensive strategy” to defeat the IS.

Trump also asked the Pentagon to recommend changes to the “rules of engagement and other United States policy restrictions that exceed the requirements of international law regarding the use of force” against the terror group.

The plan must include “mechanisms to cut off or seize ISIS’s financial support, including financial transfers, money laundering, oil revenue, human trafficking, sales of looted art and historical artifacts, and other revenue sources”.

Moreover, the president hopes the Pentagon identifies “new coalition partners in the fight against ISIS and policies to empower coalition partners to fight ISIS and its affiliates”.

The president signed the executive order a day after signing another order “to keep radical Islamic terrorists out of the United States of America” and which calls for the suspension of all refugee arrivals for 120 days.

It also suspends for 90 days the issuing of visas to all citizens of a number of predominantly Islamic countries including Libya, Sudan, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Iran, until a process of extreme vetting is adopted.

“We want to ensure that we are not admitting into our country the very threats our soldiers are fighting overseas. We only want to admit those into our country who will support our country and love deeply our people,” Trump had said Friday after signing the order. EFE