United States President Donald Trump on Sunday said that he will impose an additional tariff of 10 percent on countries that align themselves with the “anti-American policies of BRICS”. Trump made the statement in wake of the BRICS summit that kicked off in Brazil. He did not elaborate on what he meant by these policies.
"Any Country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS, will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% Tariff. There will be no exceptions to this policy. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The BRICS leaders comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia warned of the rise of tariffs threatening global trade, making veiled criticism of Trump’s tariff policies.
Hours after the statement, Trump issued the warning stating that he would punish countries seeking to join the group.
In opening remarks to the summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva drew a parallel with the Cold War's Non-Aligned Movement, a group of developing nations that resisted joining either side of a polarized global order, reported Reuters.
"BRICS is the heir to the Non-Aligned Movement," Lula told leaders. "With multilateralism under attack, our autonomy is in check once again."
"If international governance does not reflect the new multipolar reality of the 21st century, it is up to BRICS to help bring it up to date," Lula said in his statement while pointing towards the failure of the US-led wars in the Middle-east.
The first BRICS summit was held in 2009 involving leaders from Brazil, Russia, India and China. Over 30 countries have expressed their interest to participate in BRICS either as full members or as partners.
