US President Donald Trump has once again defended his aggressive tariff policy, describing it as a powerful negotiating tool that not only strengthens the American economy but has also helped him “settle seven wars.”
Speaking on Tuesday while announcing the relocation of the US Space Command headquarters to Huntsville, Alabama, Trump said tariffs had given Washington unmatched leverage in global trade and diplomacy.
“Without the United States, everything in the world would die. It’s true. It’s so powerful. It’s so big. And I made it really big in the first four years… We’re the hottest, we’re the best financially. The money coming in is so big because of tariffs and other things. Tariffs make us great negotiators,” Trump asserted.
He went on to claim that many international disputes had been resolved because of trade leverage. “I settled seven wars and numerous of those wars were because of trade. And numerous of the trade deals that I made were because of tariffs. It gives you a great negotiating ability,” he said.
Trump also reiterated his stance on India, justifying the 50 percent tariffs imposed on Indian imports. He argued that business ties between the two countries had long been skewed, with New Delhi imposing “some of the highest tariffs in the world” on American goods.
“We get along with India very well. But for many years, it was a one-sided relationship… India was charging us tremendous tariffs, some as high as 100 per cent. Harley Davidson couldn’t sell in India because of a 200 per cent tariff. They had to build a plant there to avoid it,” he noted.
The remarks come amid heightened global uncertainty, with US tariffs on Indian imports—plus an additional 25 percent duty linked to India’s purchase of Russian crude oil—fuelling economic tensions between Washington and New Delhi.
