
By John Ross
Trump is attempting to impose an international trade system arbitrarily dictated by the U.S.
The tariffs adopted by the U.S. to meet Trump’s August 1 deadline fully confirm just how dangerous the new trade system Trump is attempting to impose on the world is for all countries, both in the Global South and the Global North.
Beyond even arbitrary economic decisions, Trump’s actions make it clear that under this system, unilateral U.S. tariff dictats will be used against countries that adopt political policies the U.S. opposes. Thus:
- Trump has imposed a 50% tariff on Brazil because it is trying Bolsonaro for attempting a coup d’état.
- A 25% tariff has been imposed on India after Trump criticized it for importing Russian oil.
- A 35% tariff has been imposed on Canada after Trump stated that reaching a trade deal was difficult because Canada had decided to recognise a Palestinian state.
Furthermore, as Trump has confirmed through his frequent changes in rates, he intends to introduce a system in which the U.S. can alter its policy at any time to promote its interests against those of any other country.
The WTO system was very far from perfect; it had a systematic bias against developing countries. However, the world trade system that Trump is attempting to introduce eliminates even the elements of multilateralism and the rules established in WTO agreements, making it a far more dangerous system for every country....