Faith Nyasuguta
Current U.S. President Donald Trump (pictured) has announced plans to impose unilateral tariffs on U.S. trading partners within the next two weeks, signaling a sharp turn in his trade policy approach. Speaking to reporters at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Trump declared that letters would soon be sent to countries, laying out the new tariffs in no uncertain terms.
“At a certain point, we’re just going to send letters out… saying this is the deal. You can take it, or you can leave it,” Trump said. He made it clear that countries would have no room for negotiation beyond that point. “You don’t have to shop in the United States, as I say,” he added.
Trump justified the move by saying it was impossible to negotiate trade agreements with over 150 countries. He claimed that major deals had already been secured with China and the UK, and that talks were still ongoing with around 15 others, including Japan and South Korea.
His comments come 60 days into a 90-day tariff pause he first announced on April 9, when he introduced a baseline 10% tariff on goods from all countries. Some regions were hit with much higher proposed rates, 20% for the European Union and a steep 46% for Vietnam, under what he called “reciprocal tariffs.”
Initially, Trump had delayed these higher tariffs to give countries time to negotiate trade deals. But that window is rapidly closing. On April 23, he warned that countries failing to strike deals within a few weeks would face the tariffs.
Now, with the clock ticking, his message is firm: trade partners must accept the proposed terms or face consequences. “You can take it, or you can leave it,” he repeated during the briefing, showing no signs of backing down.
Adding weight to his announcement, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled on Tuesday that the tariffs could remain in place for at least two more months. This temporarily overturned a lower court’s decision that sought to block the measures.
As Trump pushes forward with this bold trade move, many are watching to see how global partners will respond, and whether this hardline strategy will reshape international trade dynamics yet again.
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