Former U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a fresh warning to countries aligning with the BRICS bloc, vowing to impose an additional 10% tariff on their imports to the United States.
“Any country aligning themselves with the Anti-American policies of BRICS will be charged an ADDITIONAL 10% Tariff,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account late Sunday.
“There will be no exceptions to this policy,” he added.
Trump’s remarks come amid the ongoing BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, where leaders from Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa gathered to discuss global economic cooperation and geopolitical tensions.
During the summit, the BRICS group issued a statement criticizing the use of unilateral trade measures. “We express serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures which distort trade and are inconsistent with WTO rules,” the statement read.
The bloc also condemned recent U.S. and Israeli military actions targeting Iran, a BRICS member, and called for urgent negotiations to de-escalate the crisis in Gaza.
“We reiterate our grave concern about the situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, with the resumption of continuous Israeli attacks against Gaza and obstruction of the entry of humanitarian aid into the territory,” the BRICS statement added.
This is not the first time Trump has lashed out at BRICS or its growing influence. In December, he threatened to impose a 100% tariff on countries exploring alternatives to the U.S. dollar, a move that economists at the time warned could have adverse effects on the global economy.
Despite the threats, BRICS nations have accelerated their de-dollarization agenda, especially in the aftermath of sweeping Western sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. At the current summit, BRICS members reaffirmed their commitment to developing a cross-border payment system independent of the U.S. financial infrastructure.
Trump’s latest tariff threat comes ahead of plans by his team to formally notify trade partners of new tariff rates. According to Trump, the letters will begin to be delivered at noon ET on Monday.
