Trump said on Monday any country that does business with Iran will face a tariff rate of 25% on any trade with the U.S..
– “Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America,” Trump said.
– Tariffs are paid by U.S. importers of goods from those countries.
– Iran, a member of the OPEC oil producing group, has been heavily sanctioned by Washington for years.
– It exports much of its oil to China, with Turkey, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and India among its other top trading partners.
– “This Order is final and conclusive,” Trump said.
– The Chinese embassy in Washington criticized Trump’s approach, saying China will take “all necessary measures” to safeguard its interests and opposed “any illicit unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction.”
– “China’s position against the indiscriminate imposition of tariffs is consistent and clear. Tariff wars and trade wars have no winners, and coercion and pressure cannot solve problems.”
– Japan and South Korea, which agreed on trade deals with the U.S. last year, said on Tuesday they are closely monitoring the development.
– “We … plan to take any necessary measures once the specific actions of the U.S. government become clear,” South Korea’s trade ministry said.
– Japan’s Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Masanao Ozaki told reporters that Tokyo will “carefully examine the specific content of any measures as they become clear, as well as their potential impact on Japan, and will respond appropriately.”
– Trump has said the U.S. may meet Iranian officials and that he was in contact with Iran’s opposition, while piling pressure on its leaders, including threatening military action.
– Tehran said on Monday it was keeping communication channels with Washington open as Trump considered how to respond to the situation in Iran, which has posed one of the gravest tests of clerical rule in the country since the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
– Trump’s trade policy is under legal pressure as the U.S. Supreme Court is considering striking down a broad swathe of Trump’s existing tariffs.
– Iran exported products to 147 trading partners in 2022, according to World Bank’s most recent data.