American President Donald Trump declared on Thursday, via video conference at the World Economic Forum in Davos, that businesses worldwide will have to pay a tariff if they do not manufacture their products in the United States, emphasizing his efforts to make America a „production superpower.”
Trump also emphasized that he seeks fair trade relations with foreign countries, expressing dissatisfaction with massive deficits with China and many Asian countries as well as with the hundreds of billions of dollars in deficits with the European Union, as reported by Yonhap and dpa.
The new American president also stated that he will ask NATO member states to pay 5% of their gross domestic product - much more than the 2% limit set in 2014 by the leaders of the Transatlantic Alliance.
"My message to every business in the world is very simple: Come and make your product in America and we will offer you among the lowest taxes of any nation on Earth. We reduce them very substantially even from the initial tax cuts.
But if you do not make your product in America, which is your prerogative, then very simply, you will have to pay a tariff, different amounts, but a tariff that will direct hundreds of billions of dollars and even trillions of dollars into our treasury to strengthen our economy and pay off the debt," stated the American president.
Mentioning his efforts to boost oil and gas production within the declaration of a "national energy emergency," Trump argued that this will not only reduce the practical cost for all goods and services, but will help the US become a production superpower and the global capital of artificial intelligence and crypto.
In his first major speech to a global audience since the beginning of his second term at the White House, Trump criticized the European Union, notes dpa.
In a nearly one-hour speech addressed to business and political leaders gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump stated that the United States is treated very unfairly and poorly by the bloc of 27 nations due to its trade and business rules.
Trump said he will not tolerate the US trade deficit with the EU. He also accused the EU of refusing to buy agricultural products and cars from the US.
"I'm trying to be constructive, because I love Europe," he said in the video intervention from Washington.
During his election campaign, Trump mentioned plans to introduce new tariffs of 10% to 20% on imports from the EU, stating that these measures will help domestic industries and reduce the trade deficit.