U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the new import tariffs, set to take effect on August 1, are not directed against any specific country or region but are part of a global policy aimed at addressing the United States’ trade deficit.
As reported by Ukrinform, he made this comment to journalists on Friday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, responding to a question about whether the tariffs on goods from ASEAN countries (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) could harm America.
“No, I’m not concerned about that. That’s not going to happen, because these tariffs are being applied on a global scale. These are not aimed at one country or one region. It’s all around the world,” Rubio emphasized.
According to him, over the past decades, the U.S. has accumulated significant trade deficits with many countries, “and that had to be addressed”.
“And so that’s what the President is doing,” the Secretary of State said.
He reminded that the new tariffs will take effect on August 1, and this decision has already been made because “markets need certainty.” At the same time, Rubio suggested that agreements could be reached with certain countries regarding easing U.S. tariff policies.
As reported by Ukrinform, at the beginning of July, the U.S. President sent letters to the leaders of seven countries threatening to impose tariffs of 20% to 30% on their goods starting August 1.
In addition, Trump announced the introduction of a 50% tariff on all copper imports to the U.S. beginning August 1.
Photo: Office of the President
Source: Rubio: U.S. tariffs are not targeted at any specific country but apply globally
