Trump gives US allies hope of bypassing new trade tariffs
2018-03-09 09:47:06 source：The Times
March 9, 2018
President Trump imposed steep tariffs on steel and aluminium imports last night but said that American defence allies could be spared.
The tariffs will start at 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium. They will come into effect in 14 days, but trading and military partners of the US could be exempted. Allies could also escape the tariffs if their defence spending met acceptable levels, he suggested.
There would be a reduction in tariffs for countries that “treat us fairly”, he said, but added “many of the countries that treat us the worst on trade and on military are our allies”, singling out Germany, which spends 1.2 per cent of its GDP on defence. Mr Trump has said he wants all Nato countries to spend a minimum of 2 per cent.
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