Washington: Doubling down on his 10% tariff threat against all BRICS countries, US President Donald Trump in press briefing yesterday claimed that he ‘hit’ the intra-governmental organisation ‘very hard’, adding that he will never allow another any the group’s attempts at de-dollarisation, calling USD ‘the king.’
Mocking the multi-nation bloc’s attempts at de-dollarisation, Trump, while talking about his administration’s attempts at strengthening the US dollar said “You have this little group called BRICS, it’s fading out fast. But they wanted to take over the dominance of the dollar, and the standard of the dollar.
“Anybody that’s in the BRICS consortium; we are going to tariff you 10%.”
Reasserting that the USD will remain the world reserve currency for ‘generations to come’, he called losing the dollar’s dominance akin to losing a world war.
"When I heard about this group from BRICS, six countries, basically, I hit them very, very hard. And if they ever really form in a meaningful way, it will end very quickly," Trump said without naming the countries. "We can never let anyone play games with us."
On June 7, Trump had threatened all countries who were aligning with BRICS an additional 10% tariff, claiming that the group’s policies were “anti-American.”
“Any Country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS, will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% Tariff. There will be no exceptions to this policy. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
During the summit in Rio De Janeiro, BRICS countries had condemned the US tariffs and its strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Stating that Washington’s arbitrary tariffs were a violation of WTO rules, the member states noted that they “threaten to reduce global trade, disrupt global supply chains, and introduce uncertainty.”
Focusing on creating a multi-polar world order and present an alternative to Western hegemony, in recent years, BRICS has attracted many countries who seek to shift from Western dominance, and seek greater representation.
The bloc formed Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, has expanded considerably over the years, joined by Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, the UAE, Ethiopia, and Egypt.
Additionally, while not members, BRICS also has trade partnerships with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Thailand, Malayasia, Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Nigeria, Vietnam, Uganda.
The bloc’s eleven member nations alone represent over 40% of the world population, contribute to over 37.3% of the global GDP by PPP, control 40% of the global oil supply, 75% of rare earth minerals, and account for 50% of the world’s solar power.
They also have their own money lending bodies such as the New Development Bank, offering an alternative to the IMF, ADB, and World Bank.
