President Donald Trump announced Wednesday his decision to level sweeping economic tariffs on foreign countries across the globe, but three significant countries were not on the list.
Mexico, Canada, and Russia were left off of the long list of tariff proposals that the president displayed at the White House.
Trump leveled tariffs on Mexico and Canada prior to his tariff event on Wednesday on select industries, including a 25 percent duty on auto imports.
A White House fact sheet revealed that goods from Canada and Mexico that complied with President Donald Trump’s USMCA trade deal signed in 2020 would continue to have no tariffs but that non-compliant energy and potash would see a ten percent tariff.
‘That stays exempt for now,’ Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed in an interview with Fox News at the White House after Trump’s announcement.
The treasury secretary explained that Russia was left off of the list because the United States did not trade with them.
‘Well, Russia and Belarus we don’t trade with. Right?’ he said. ‘They are sanctioned.’
Bessent admitted that some tariffs on countries like China were higher than expected, but said they were part of a negotiating process.
U.S. President Donald Trump displays a chart on tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House
US President Donald Trump signs an executive order after delivering remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event in the Rose Garden
He urged every country alarmed by President Trump’s actions to take stock in the new tariffs before reacting dramatically.
‘My advice to every now is do not retaliate. Sit back. Take it in. Let’s see how it goes. Because, if you retaliate, there will be escalation. If you don’t retaliate, this is the high water mark,’ he said.
Trump did not hold back as he announced sweeping tariffs across the world, including on American allied countries.
‘My fellow Americans, this is liberation day, we’ve been waiting for a long time,’ Trump said.
He singled out the European Union as ‘very tough, very, very tough traders’ and proposed a 20 percent tariff.
You think of European Union, very friendly. They rip us off. It’s so said to see. It’s pathetic,’ Trump said.
He proposed a 46 percent tariff on Vietnam, noting they were ‘great negotiators’ and ‘great people’ but said that the United States suffered a 90 percent trading rate.
Other tariffs included 32 percent for Taiwan, 24 percent on Japan and 26 percent on India.
