The president said the tax will be applied to ‘any country that is aligned with the BRICS anti -American policies’. President of the United States, Donald Trump. JOSE LUIS MAGANA/AP Photo The president of the United States, Donald Trump, warned that countries aligned with BRIC alliance policies against US interests will be reached by an additional 10%rate. Trump has long criticized BRICS, an organization whose members include Brazil, China, Russia and India, among others, created to boost the international position of these countries and challenge the US and Western Europe. “Any country that combines with BRICS anti -American policies will be charged with an additional 10%tariff. There will be no exceptions to this policy,” Trump wrote on social networks. The deadline for countries to reach a tariff agreement with the US was scheduled for July 9, but taxes seem to be in force now from August 1. To date, the US have signed commercial agreements with the UK and Vietnam only. The White House seemed to announce another postponement in the implementation of tariffs. Initially, they were suspended from April for three months, a date that now expires in early July. But at the end of last week, a new limit from August began to be mentioned. Asked if taxes would change from July 9 or August 1, Trump said on Sunday (07/06): “There will be tariffs, the tariffs will be tariffs.” He added that between ten and 15 letters will be sent to countries this week, informing them of the new tariff rate if an agreement is not reached. US Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, clarified that taxes will take effect on August 1. However, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent later said that this date did not indicate a new deadline. Since taking office in January, Trump has announced a series of taxes on importing products from other countries, arguing that they will boost American industry and protect jobs. In April, in what the US president called the “Liberation Day,” he announced a wave of new taxes on countries around the world, although he quickly suspended his most aggressive plans to allow three months of negotiations. Trump’s threat to countries that cooperate with Brics countries emerged after members of the Bloc criticize US tariff policies, as well as proposing reforms in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the appreciation of major coins beyond the dollar. Last year, the list of Brics members expanded beyond Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, and also included Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. Bloc countries represent more than half of the world’s population. BRICS leaders, who hold a two -day summit in Rio de Janeiro started last weekend, called for renovations in global institutions and positioned the alliance as a platform for diplomacy amid the climbing commercial conflicts and geopolitical tensions. A joint statement of the Ministers of Finance of Brics Countries released on Sunday (07/06) criticized tariffs as a threat to the global economy, which they say “uncertainty to international economic and commercial activities.” Andrew Wilson, Deputy Secretary-General of the International Chamber of Commerce, based in France, said it would be challenging for countries to stop doing business with China. He told BBC’s Today program: “Going away from China in various sectors is much harder to achieve in practice in the world.” “If we look at China’s dominance in various sectors – electric vehicles, batteries and particularly rare lands and magnets – there are no viable alternatives to Chinese production.” During the BRICS meeting in Brazil, the leaders also condemned the military attacks of Israel and the US to Iran in June, stating that they represent a violation of international law. Over the course of 12 days, Israel and the US have launched bombs and missiles on Iranian targets, such as some nuclear facilities, before a ceasefire was agreed. The BRICS summit was attended by world leaders, such as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. China’s president, Xi Jinping, did not attend the event and was replaced by the LI Qiang Prime Minister. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has an arrest warrant of the International Criminal Court against him for alleged crimes of war in Ukraine, participated in the internet summit. By 2024, Trump threatened with 100% tariffs on Brics countries if they adopted their own coin that rivaled the US dollar. BRICS statement is released on the first day of the meeting
Source link
Trump’s threat to BRICS ‘challenge’ to the USA
41