The measure is aimed at addressing the alleged “threat” Brazil poses to America, according to the US president.
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order imposing a 50% tariff on all goods from Brazil effective August 1, claiming the country poses a threat to “the national security, foreign policy, and economy” of the US.
Signed on Wednesday, the order hikes the existing tariff on Brazil by 40% and accuses the South American nation of various violations, including alleged “serious human rights abuses that have undermined the rule of law.”
Trump singled out the persecution of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is facing trial over allegedly plotting a coup following his 2022 election defeat.
“Members of the Government of Brazil are also politically persecuting a former President of Brazil, which is contributing to the deliberate breakdown in the rule of law in Brazil, to politically motivated intimidation in that country, and to human rights abuses,” the order states.
Trump announced his intention to impose a blanket 50% tariff on all Brazilian goods earlier this month in a letter posted on Truth Social. In the letter, he also demanded an end to what he called the “witch hunt” against the “highly respected” Bolsonaro.
At the time, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva vowed to answer the tariff measure and defend the interests of his country, pointing out that Trump “was elected to govern the US – he was not elected to be the emperor of the world.”
“When I read the letter, I thought it was fake news,” Lula said, describing it as “breaking away from any protocol, any liturgy, that should exist between the relations between two heads of state.”
Trump previously threatened an additional 10% tariff on all BRICS nations, accusing the bloc of trying to “destroy the dollar as the global standard.”
Earlier on Wednesday, he targeted another member of the group, India, announcing that it will face 25% tariffs and additional penalties for continuing to trade with Russia. Responding to the move, New Delhi said it would take “all steps necessary” to secure its interests and expressed its commitment to “concluding a fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement” with the US.
Image credit: Erwan Hesry
