The president of the United States, Donald Trump, announced on Wednesday the application of a 50% tariff to Brazil, arguing that this high tax is due not only to the commercial deficit, but to the trial against former president Jair Bolsonaro for a coup attempt and for the “attacks” to electoral freedom and expression.
“I have known and treated with former president Jair Bolsonaro, and I have respected him a lot, as most of the leaders of other countries did. The way in which Brazil has treated a highly respected leader in the world during his term, including the United States, is an international shame. The trial should not take place. It is a witch hunt that must end immediately, “the Brazilian president, Lula da Silva, told a letter.
However, Trump has pointed out that the application of tariffs to Brazilian products are also “partly to the malicious attacks of Brazil in electoral freedom, and the fundamental rights of freedom of expression.” In this sense, he has put as an example the “Hundreds of secret and illegal censorship orders issued against US social media platforms”to which the Supreme of Brazil has “threatened with fines of millions of dollars and the exit of the Brazilian market.
It is worth remembering that On April 2, the US had put a 10% surcharge to imports from Brazilin line with the minimum rate applied to almost all countries in the region.
According to Donald Trump, the new tariff against Brazil is still generous
Outside the political level, he asked Lula to “understand” that this tax is “a much lower figure than what is needed to have equal conditions “in bilateral trade. “It is necessary to rectify the serious injustices of the current regime,” he said, before adding that there would be no tariffs in the event that the companies of the main South American economy decided to move to US territory.
In addition, the White House tenant has taken the opportunity to remind the president of Brazil that, in case he decides to increase his tariffs in response, Washington will apply a new climb: “Whatever the number you choose to increase them, will be added to 50% that we charge,” he explained, although he has recognized that these measures “can be modified up or down according to the relationship with the country.”
Hours before, Trump had announced tariffs against the Philippines, Algeria, Iraq, Libya, Sri Lanka, Brunéi and Moldova in the framework of the commercial war that unleashed months ago and in advance of the entry into force on August 1 of the taxes individualized by countries. In recent days, he has also communicated tariff measures against Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Tunisia, South Africa, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Indonesia, Serbia, Bangladesh, Thailand, Cambodia, Burma and Laos.
Source: Ambito
