On his Truth Social network he made it clear that there will be no grace period, but rather that the measures will begin as soon as he returns to the White House.
“On January 20, as one of my first executive orders, I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25% tariff on ALL products entering the United States and its ridiculous open borders,” he wrote.
“Thousands of people are crossing Mexico and Canada, bringing crime and drugs at levels never seen before,” he estimated, equating migrants with criminals without providing any evidence.
“Right now, a caravan coming from Mexico, made up of thousands of people, seems unstoppable in its quest to cross our currently open border,” complained the magnate, who blames the government of Democratic President Joe Biden for not doing what enough to stop the migratory influx.
“This tariff will remain in effect until drugs, particularly fentanyl, and all illegal migrants stop this invasion of our country,” Trump wrote.
After Trump promised a 25% tariff on the products of his trading partners in the T-MEC, the exchange rate reached 20.7535 pesos per dollar with a 2.32% depreciation regarding this Monday’s closing.
Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Economy did not immediately comment when contacted by Reuters.
“They are scamming us”
During the campaign, the 78-year-old Republican already threw darts at Mexico. “Do you know that Mexico is our number one trading partner? Do you know why that is? They make a fortune. They have taken over our country,” he denounced.
“We are being scammed left and right, it’s ridiculous,” he said hours before the Nov. 5 presidential election, in which he defeated Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.
The millionaire has been accusing foreigners in an irregular situation for months of poisoning “the blood” of the United States, which has become, according to him, “a garbage can for the rest of the world to throw away people it doesn’t want.”
He believes that his neighbors have the ability to “easily solve this problem that has been latent for a long time.”
“We demand that they use this power and, until they do, it is time for them to pay a very high price!” he said Monday.
Canada says it is “essential” for US energy supplies
After Trump’s announcement, Canada stated that it was “essential” to the United States’ energy supply and insisted that the relationship between the two countries was “balanced and mutually beneficial, especially for American workers,” according to a government statement.
Ottawa “will continue the discussion of these issues with the new” American administration, according to the joint statement by Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Public Security Minister Dominic LeBlanc.
Extra tariff for China
Its other target is China, the United States’ main strategic rival.
Washington maintains that most fentanyl, a synthetic opioid responsible for tens of thousands of overdose deaths each year in the United States, is manufactured by Mexican cartels with substances from China known as precursors.
“I have had many conversations with China about the huge quantities of drugs, particularly fentanyl, sent to the United States, but to no avail,” he complained in another message on Truth Social.
Authorities “told me they would institute their maximum penalty, death, for any drug trafficker caught doing this, but unfortunately, they never did and drugs are coming into our country, primarily through Mexico, at levels never before seen.” seen,” he added.
