US President Donald Trump has announced plans to impose on Saturday a 25 per cent tariff on Canada and Mexico, its two neighbouring countries, and is 🐬also in the proce𒁏ss of considering a similar measure against China.
Trump said he would make a🐈 decision on Thursday night🎉 about whether to include oil in the list of tariffed items.
“We will be announcing the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for a number of reasons," the president told reporters in th✤e Oval Office of the White House on Thursday.
He cited illegal immigration, smuggling of drugs and the massive subsidies that the US gives to Canada and Mexico in the form of deficits as the reasons fo🤪r the tariffs.
“I will be putting the tariff of 25 peꩲr cent on Canada and, sepꦏarately, 25 per cent on Mexico. We will really have to do that because we have very big deficits with those countries. Those tariffs may or may not rise with time,” said the president.
Responding to a question, Trump said he would decide Thursday night whether to inclu🅰de oil among the items subject to tariffs.
“We're going to make that determination probably tonight💎 on oil. Because they send us oil...It depends on what the price is. If the oil is properly priced, if they treat us properly, which they don't,” he💛 said.
“Mexico and Canada have never been good to us on trade," Trump sai꧙d, adding that the two countries 🎉have treated the US "very unfairly" on trade.
He asserted that the US will be able to make it up "very quickly" as it "does not need" the products that t🎃hey have.
"We have all the oil you n♕eed. We have all the trees you need, meaning th🦩e lumber. We have more than almost anybody in those two categories. In oil, we have more than anybody," he said.
"We don't need anybody's trees, we have great lumber ๊in this country. We have to free them up environmentally, which I can do very quickly," he said.
"We don't need what they have. For us to be subsidising Canada to the tune of USD 175 billion a year, and subsidising Mexico to the tune of USD 250 billion-USD 300 billion a year,” he sℱaid.
Trump said he was also thinkinไg about taking measures against China for sending fentanyl 🐷into the US.
“Because of that, they're causing us hundreds of thousands of꧙ deaths. China is going to end up paying a t🌸ariff also for that. We are in the process of doing that. We'll make that determination of what it's going to be,” he said.
“China has to stop sending fent🍎anyl into our country and killing our people,” Trump said.
Fentanyl is a highly addictive synthetic opioid, which, according to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), presents the deadliest drug threat in the couꦿntry.
