Trump's Tariffs Stir Anti-US Sentiment Across Global South
Till date, a total of 23 countries have been sent tariff letters by US President Donald Trump. These include formal US allies like South Korea, Canada and Japan, BRICS states and partners and other Global South nations in Africa and Asia.
SputnikThe tariff letters being sent by President Donald Trump to other foreign heads of states are raising trust concerns against the US among allies as well as partners, according to official statements and experts. Meanwhile, in developing countries of the Global South — including BRICS members and partners, as well as African and Southeast Asian states — these unilateral tariff threats could open up additional 'strategic space' for alternative global actors, trade experts have told Sputnik India.
For instance, Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said in a media interview that Tokyo needs to "become more self-sufficient in security, energy and food, and less dependent on America" after receiving the US tariff letter.
India, which is also a strategic partner of the US, has threatened retaliatory tariffs against certain US imports at the
World Trade Organisation (WTO) in response to additional levies affecting Indian imports entering the US. India hasn't received any tariff letter from Trump so far and is
negotiating a trade deal with the US, but has been criticised multiple times by the US President for its trade policy towards the US. Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar have also received tariff letters from the US President.
Trump has also warned that Indian imports could face an additional 10% duty due to India's membership of "anti-American" BRICS grouping.
Brazil, another BRICS nation which hosted the leaders' Summit this week, has taken a
more vocal stance against Trump, also accusing him of political interference for backing ex-President Jair Bolsonaro ahead of his court trial for plotting a coup in 2022.
"The world has changed. We don't want an emperor," Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva told reporters at the BRICS Summit in Rio De Janeiro.
Lula has vowed to impose reciprocal tariffs in response to the 50% tariff announced by Trump against Brazilian imports, as he urged for sovereignty and respect.
Trump's tariff threats against BRICS have failed to deter Indonesia, the newest entrant to the club, and Malaysia, which has said that it won't sign a deal with the US unless it benefits Malaysia. Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines (a US ally) and Thailand are other countries in the region which have received the US tariff letters.
Further, Trump has announced imposition of tariffs on South Africa, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya among others. Trump told NBC News on Thursday that all the countries, whether they recieve a tariff letter or not, would face a "blanket tariff" of 15-20% after the 1 August deadline.
This week, the US President also hosted five African leaders from Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal at the White House to engage them on his "trade, not aid" policy. However, the meeting attracted attention for wrong reasons after Trump praised the Liberian President Joseph Boakai for his good English, ignorant of the fact that English is the official language there.
Commenting on Trump's tariff policies and actions, Indian trade expert Debashis Chakraborty, a professor at Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), told Sputnik India that many of the Global South countries could gravitate more towards China due to the trade threats.
"It is mostly about making a strategic choice, whether to wait for the Trump presidency to pan out and hope things would settle under the next President. Each country has their own choice to make," Chakraborty said.
If we look at Brazil, President Lula seems to be doubling down very vocally in commitment towards the BRICS. In May, during a state visit to Beijing, Lula and President Xi intensified the trading relationship even as Trump threatens both nations. So, the trend is visible there, he noted.
"China has invested heavily in Africa’s infrastructure over the last decade, with nearly 50 African countries already part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). So, there are chances that Trump’s policy actions, be it cutting off developmental aid or tariff diplomacy, could create further openings for China on the continent," the IIFT professor said.
He noted that most of the Southeast Asian countries were also part of the BRI framework and had vast trading relationships with China.
"So, the unilateral tariffs may have the opposite impact than desired in this crucial part of the Indo-Pacific, driving these nations away from the US," the Indian professor said.
However, still, one big concern for these nations is their trade deficit with China and the limitation to export their products to the Chinese market, he added.
Explaining India's position on Trump's tariff threats, Chakraborty noted that the Indian delegation at the World Trade Organisation has in recent weeks threatened to impose reciprocal tariffs against US imports, indicating a bolder stance in negotiations.
"This is in response to the US trying to arm-twist India on getting concessions on a number of commodities and product lines, including dairy and agriculture, which have been rightly called as India’s 'red lines'. So, now India is also seeking to ramp up pressure on the US through these WTO tariffs in response to the unilateral tariff imposition. However, the Trump administration has crippled the WTO dispute resolution mechanism by blocking the appointment of judges, so a final settlement on these issues will have to be done bilaterally. Certainly, India is using these counter-tariff threats against the US as a negotiating strategy to make them come around our demands, much like Trump is wielding the threat of tariffs against the US trading partners," he explained.
Chakraborty said that India would prefer to 'wait and watch' rather than move closer to China, despite Trump’s tariff threats, due to its trade deficit with China and growing concerns over dumping in recent years.
"So, India would take a much more nuanced approach than what Brazil has taken in this ongoing global tariff war," he said.
Meanwhile, Malaysian economist and author
Dr. Shankaran Nambiar told
Sputnik India on Thursday that
Trump needs to be considerate towards Southeast Asian economies as they were located in "China's backyard".
Nambiar said that even though most of the ASEAN nations would like to take a "balanced approach" in US-China global rivalry, Trump's unilateral actions could push them further towards Beijing as multipolarity gains ground in the region.