Washington - President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a
5-per-cent tariff on all goods imported from Mexico to pressure the
country into stopping illegal immigrants from entering the US.
In a statement, Trump said Mexico's "passive cooperation" with the
flow of illegal immigration was an "emergency and extraordinary
threat to the national security and economy of the United States."
The tariff will be imposed on June 10 and be raised to 10 per cent on
July 1 "if the crisis persists," Trump added.
The tariff will then be gradually increased "if Mexico still has not
taken action to dramatically reduce or eliminate the number of
illegal aliens crossing into the the United States."
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador called for dialogue in
a letter to Trump written after the announcement, saying that the
social issues driving migrants to the US "cannot be fixed with
tariffs or coercive measures."
Lopez Obrador said Trump's "America First" narrative was a fallacy as
he called for in-depth discussions about the reasons behind
migration.
"And please, remember that I don't lack courage, that I am not
cowardly or timorous but I act on principles," the Mexican president
said, adding "nothing by force, all for reason and the law."
Trump has frequently expressed frustration over a growing number of
migrants at the US border with Mexico. He has threatened to shut down
the border with his southern neighbour entirely and declared a
national emergency to obtain funding to build a wall along the
border.
Mexican trade negotiator Jesus Seade said the tariffs were
"disastrous."
"The threat turned into action is serious, very serious, extremely
serious," television station Foro TV quoted Seade as saying.
Shoppers wait in line at a Sam's Club in Mexico City. The Trump administration announced Thursday it will impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from Europe, Mexico and Canada after failing to win concessions from the American allies. Mexico retaliated quickly saying it would penalize US imports including pork bellies, apples, grapes, cheeses and flat steel. Picture: Marco Ugarte/AP
The Mexican government would not "sit idle until June 10," he said,
adding: "but I trust that this is something that will not actually
happen as it would be extremely serious."
Trump's surprise announcement came as the Mexican Senate received the
updated free trade deal between the US, Mexico and Canada for
ratification.
Meanwhile, US Vice President Mike Pence was in Canada for talks with
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussing the deal. Canada has also
started the ratification process this week.
It was not immediately clear if the updated trade deal would be
affected by Trump's move.
Mexico is a key trading partner for the US, with trade worth 671
billion dollars last year.
It is not the only country to have faced hard-ball tactics from the
US president. China has been embroiled in a trade war with the US for
the past year after Trump began applying tariffs to hundreds of
billions of dollars worth of goods.