U.S. tariffs spark condemnation worldwide

U.S. President Donald Trump's recent imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, coupled with his follow-up memorandum to impose "reciprocal tariffs" on all trading partners, has sparked widespread condemnation across the globe and could lead to a trade war, according to many experts.

Contrary to Trump's claim that foreign countries will bear the cost, the burden of tariffs will fall on U.S. citizens, according to Choorikkadan Veeramani, professor and director of the Center for Development Studies under the government of Thiruvananthapuram Kerala in India.

"It can lead to a kind of trade war, and trade war is not good for anyone. Trump is saying that foreign countries will have to pay the tariff, that we will collect money from the foreign countries, but actually he's going to collect the money from the U.S. consumer, because the impact of the tariff is that the prices for everything for the U.S. households will go up," said Veeramani.

In addition to bringing higher prices to U.S. customers, the tariffs, rather than boosting U.S. exports as Trump and his supporters hope, are expected to have the opposite effect.

"Trump is believing that when you impose a tariff on a particular product, U.S. production of those products will go up and then they will be able to export to other countries. But that will not happen, because a tariff, an import tariff indirectly attacks on the exports. Why? Because when intermediate goods are coming from other countries and you pay high tariffs for imported intermediate goods, the cost of producing products will go up. So, it is indirectly acting as a tax on their exports. So, export competitiveness will go down," said Veeramani.

The negative impact of these tariffs is not confined to the U.S. alone. Far from its shores, residents in Vietnam have already begun to feel the repercussions.

"Regarding the aluminum industry, Vietnam will encounter some difficulties. Because until now, Vietnam's aluminum industry has only been subject to a 10 to 15 percent tariff in the United States. Now that the tariff has risen to 25 percent, it will be more challenging for Vietnamese aluminum products to enter the U.S. market," said Mai Van Nam, a manager of a local company in Vietnam.

Beyond aluminum and steel, the broader implementation of the "reciprocal tariffs" also raises concerns in Vietnam.

"From my perspective on reciprocal tariffs, we are a small country. We import a lot, but our exports are not as significant. Therefore, with reciprocal tariffs, we are at a disadvantage and will be in a far more challenging position than they will. Everyone relies on production and imports. With such a tariff regime in place, the entire world is impacted, not just Vietnam," said Pham Cong Hoan, a mechanic in the steel and aluminum industry.

The negative influence of Trump's widely-condemned tariff policy could be particularly significant for smaller countries like Vietnam, that rely heavily on imports, leading to higher prices for consumers.

"Commodity prices will rise because Vietnam is not yet self-sufficient in many raw materials and production processes. As a result, our prices still depend heavily on foreign sources, leading to significant increases," said Le Thi Huong, an accountant.

U.S. tariffs spark condemnation worldwide

U.S. tariffs spark widespread condemnation across the globe

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's political stunts both at home and abroad cannot whitewash Japan's World War II (WWII) aggression, but instead expose the schemes of the country's far-right forces to incite bloc confrontation and promote remilitarization, says a China Media Group commentary published on Sunday.

An edited English version of the commentary is as follows:

In recent days, Takaichi has faced fierce criticism both domestically and internationally.

Her political stunt of kneeling in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier to lay flowers at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra during her visit to Australia further exposed her multiple political calculations to the international community.

Choosing to kneel in front of a tomb in Australia, Takaichi was not regretting for Japan's aggression and atrocities during World War II.

This act not only reveals the distorted world outlook of Japanese politicians, but also exposes their attempts to mislead public opinion, whitewash the crimes of WWII aggression, instigate bloc confrontation, and push for military buildup.

From "fawning diplomacy" during her U.S. visit in March to the recent kneeling show during her visit to Australia in May, Takaichi has been trying to cultivate a friendly image towards the West.

Geopolitically speaking, Japan's far-right forces are trying to expand their military and breach from the restraints of the pacifist constitution by exaggerating external threats. To this end, they are making every effort to exploit geopolitical conflicts and draw neighboring countries, especially Western countries, into bloc confrontation.

Since the end of WWII, Japanese leaders have never apologized to the people of victim countries such as China, the Republic of Korea, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Many Japanese politicians have even tried every means to justify the war crimes.

In particular, Takaichi has questioned the 1995 Murayama Statement, denied the Nanjing Massacre, visited the notorious Yasukuni Shrine annually for many consecutive years, and revived military rank titles during WWII, such as "taisa."

On the issue of Japan's history of aggression, Takaichi's insidious move cannot deceive the world.

Takaichi's political stunts both at home and abroad are a provocation against WWII victim countries in Asia and other regions.

This cannot conceal Japan's remilitarization attempt or the reality that " neo-militarism" is spreading and becoming a threat.

All countries that have suffered from Japanese militarist aggression should remain highly vigilant and united, and work together to safeguard the outcomes of WWII victory, so that historical tragedies never repeat themselves.

Takaichi's political stunts cannot whitewash Japan's history of aggression, remilitarization attempt: commentary