Attacking BRICS member nations, US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that Washington will impose tariffs, claiming the group’s growing economic influence represents “an attack on the dollar.”
“I’m very strong on the dollar, and anybody that wants to deal in dollars, they have an advantage over people that aren’t… anybody that wants to be in BRICS, that’s fine, but we’re going to put tariffs on your nation… BRICS was an attack on the dollar,” Trump said during a meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei at the White House.
Tariffs Target BRICS Members, Including India
The US President doubled down on his decision to levy tariffs on BRICS nations, particularly India, and described the bloc as “anti the United States.”
He also criticised China’s recent move to purchase soybeans from Argentina instead of the US, calling it an attempt to weaken relations between Washington and Buenos Aires. “China likes to draw wedges. I guess that’s natural, but it’s not going to mean anything in the end,” Trump said.
‘Economically Hostile Act’ By China
In a post on Truth Social, Trump accused China of engaging in “economically hostile” behaviour towards American farmers. “I believe that China purposefully not buying our Soybeans, and causing difficulty for our Soybean Farmers, is an Economically Hostile Act,” he wrote.
He added that his administration was considering terminating trade with China in certain areas. “We are considering terminating business with China having to do with Cooking Oil, and other elements of Trade, as retribution. As an example, we can easily produce Cooking Oil ourselves, we don’t need to purchase it from China.”
Strained US-China Relations
According to a report by NBC News, ties between the US and China have deteriorated further during Trump’s second term, fuelled by a continuing trade war, competition in technology, and disagreements over conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
This latest escalation follows Beijing’s move to impose fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and components.
Trump’s Clash With Media And Democrats
During the Q&A session, Trump attacked US network ABC, calling it “fake news,” and reportedly told the BBC he would no longer take questions from the outlet.
He also took aim at the Democrats amid the ongoing government shutdown. “The Democrats are getting killed on the shutdown… we’re closing up programs that are Democrat programs… and we’re going to have a list of them on Friday—closing up some of the most egregious, Socialist, semi-Communist programmes,” Trump said.
“They have a shutdown based on nonsense. They want to give away $1.5 trillion to people that come into the country illegally… They want to give healthcare to illegal immigrants by the MILLIONS,” he added.
