New York: Donald Trump has warned countries doing business with Iran to face a tariff of 25% on trade with the US.
Amid Trump’s tariff move, Iran is reeling under the biggest anti-government protests in years with thousands taking to streets in Tehran.
President Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social announcing that ‘any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America’.
China, UAE and India are among the top destination for Iranian goods meaning these countries will have to face the tax with Trump saying ‘This order is final and conclusive’.
It is not known the legal authority that Trump will use to slap the tariff on the countries, according to The Guardian.
Responding to Trump, China said it would take necessary ‘measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests’, while opposing ‘any illicit unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction’.
A spokesperson of the Chinese embassy in Washington made it clear that China was against ‘the indiscriminate imposition of tariffs is consistent’, adding that there are no winners in ‘Tariff wars and trade wars’ as ‘coercion and pressure cannot solve problems’.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt said on Monday that Trump was considering airstrikes among many ‘options’ however ‘diplomacy is always the first option for the president’.
‘What you’re hearing publicly from the Iranian regime is quite different from the messages the administration is receiving privately, and I think the president has an interest in exploring those messages,’ Leavitt reportedly said.
Despite outward differences, Tehran reportedly said that Iran was keeping communication channels with the US authorities open.