In his maiden address to the Joint Session of Congress on Tuesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump sharply criticized the high tariffs imposed by countries like India, China, and others, describing them as “very unfair.” He further announced that reciprocal tariffs would be implemented from next month, starting April 2.
President Trump made a strong case for his plan to impose reciprocal tariffs on imports from foreign countries, stating that he intends to charge the same tariffs on foreign goods as those countries charge on U.S. exports. “Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries,” he said.
The president specifically pointed out that nations like the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico, and Canada charge the U.S. higher tariffs than what the U.S. imposes on them. “On average, these countries charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them. It’s very unfair,” Trump added during his address, which was the first of his second term in office.
Trump also singled out India, stating, “India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100%.” His comments reflected the long-standing issues between the U.S. and India regarding trade imbalances and tariffs.
Earlier, in February, President Trump had hinted that his administration would soon implement reciprocal tariffs on countries such as India and China. This reiteration follows his discussion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the U.S. capital last month. Trump made it clear that India would not be exempt from Washington’s new tariff strategy and emphasized that “nobody can argue with me” when it comes to tariff structures.
Further, Trump criticized the tariffs imposed by China and other countries, stating, “China’s average tariff on our products is twice… and South Korea’s average tariff is four times higher.” He highlighted the stark contrast between the tariffs imposed on U.S. goods and the assistance the U.S. provides to these countries militarily and otherwise.
“This is happening by friend and foe. This system is not fair to the United States. It never was,” Trump said. He also stressed that reciprocal tariffs would take effect starting April 2, emphasizing that the U.S. would impose tariffs on foreign goods equivalent to the tariffs these countries impose on American products.
Trump further outlined that the tariffs would be a back-and-forth process: “Whatever they tax us, we will tax them. If they do non-monetary tariffs to keep us out of their market, then we will do non-monetary barriers to keep them out of our market.” He promised that the U.S. would benefit economically, bringing in “trillions and trillions of dollars that create jobs like we have never seen before.”
He concluded by stating that while his administration had successfully negotiated with China and other nations, the previous Biden administration had not been able to take significant action against unfair tariffs due to the enormous financial stakes involved.
As the U.S. gears up for the implementation of these tariffs, the global economic landscape remains uncertain, and many are watching closely to see how these new policies will affect international trade relations.