President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to impose 100% tariffs on BRICS countries if they continue efforts to create a new currency and move away from the U.S. dollar. This statement was made in a post on Truth Social dated November 30.
"The idea that the BRICS Countries are trying to move away from the Dollar while we stand by and watch is OVER," said Donald Trump, President Trump. "We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs, and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful U.S. Economy. They can go find another “sucker! There is no chance that the BRICS will replace the U.S. Dollar in International Trade, and any Country that tries should wave goodbye to America."
The BRICS nations, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, are reportedly working towards establishing a new currency to reduce their reliance on the U.S. dollar, as noted by CBS News. Mark Weinstock, a global trade expert and professor of economics at Pace University, commented on this development: "Economically, it's not a major issue because the idea of the BRICS countries being able to put together an alternative as a reserve currency for the U.S. dollar is not plausible in the short or intermediate term."
Screenshot of post on Truth Social
| Truth Social
In October, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed concerns over what he described as the U.S.'s "weaponizing" of the dollar, which he claimed forced Russia to seek alternatives. According to AP News, Putin met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other BRICS leaders at a summit in Kazan, Russia. During this meeting, he advocated for a new payment system and investment program within BRICS to circumvent sanctions and economic restrictions.
Chinese President Xi emphasized cooperation among Global South nations during the summit. He said that BRICS should become "a primary channel for strengthening solidarity and cooperation among Global South nations and a vanguard for advancing global governance reform," according to AP News. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also voiced support for dialogue over conflict: "We support dialogue and diplomacy, not war." Xi further called for unity among Global South nations while proposing a joint peace initiative for Ukraine; however, Kyiv has rejected this proposal.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed Trump's tariff threats as reported by Reuters. Peskov said that an increasing number of countries are opting to use national currencies in their trade dealings: "If the U.S. uses force, as they say economic force, to compel countries to use the dollar it will further strengthen the trend of switching to national currencies (in international trade)."
