The U.S. is preparing to impose tariffs on 15 countries, including Russia, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on March 23.
The White House under U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has repeatedly denounced what it has described as unfair economic relationships with key trading partners, including the EU and Canada. Trump has also previously threatened to impose heavy tariffs and sanctions on Russia as leverage to reach a peace deal.
The tariffs planned for April 2 are not as drastic as initially proposed, but still signal a departure from decades of free trade, the WSJ reported.
The U.S. could enact the tariffs promptly on April 2 by invoking Trump's emergency economic powers, people familiar with the matter said.
Trump has touted the date tariffs are imposed as "Liberation Day," freeing the U.S. from imbalanced trade.
Those expected to be impacted by tariffs include Russia, Australia, Canada, the EU, and China, among many other expected targets.
The U.S. is expected to impose tariffs of 15% on about 15 countries that were labeled as the "dirty 15" by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on March 18.
U.S. and Russian trade is at an all-time low due to sanctions imposed by the U.S. and other Western allies due to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. The Trump administration has been expanding diplomacy with Moscow, however, and has said it is open to exploring a trade partnership.
Trump has also previously said he could use tariffs and sanctions to pressure Russia in peace negotiations.
"Based on the fact that Russia is absolutely 'pounding' Ukraine on the battlefield right now, I am strongly considering large-scale banking sanctions, sanctions, and tariffs on Russia until a ceasefire and final settlement agreement on peace is reached," Trump said on March 7.
The Kyiv Independent
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