WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday justified his decision to impose tariffs on Brics nations, claiming the economic alliance was “an attack on the dollar” and asserting that several countries were “dropping out” of the bloc.
“I told anybody who wants to be in Brics, that’s fine — but we’re going to put tariffs on your nation,” Trump said. “Everybody dropped out. They’re all dropping out of Brics. Brics was an attack on the dollar, and I said, you want to play that game, I’ll put tariffs on all your products coming into the US. They said, ‘We’re dropping out of Brics.’ They don’t even talk about it anymore.”
His comments come just days after India called on Brics members to uphold the multilateral trading system and follow international law — a stance widely viewed as a subtle rebuke to Trump’s protectionist rhetoric. Analysts say the exchange could fuel fresh tensions between New Delhi and Washington, as Trump doubles down on his “America First” trade policy.
Trump has long accused Brics — formed by Brazil, Russia, India, and China and later expanded to include South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, and Indonesia — of undermining US economic influence. Ten more nations, including Belarus, Bolivia, and Malaysia, are partner states, while others such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka have applied for membership.
The group’s rapid growth has unsettled Washington, particularly amid discussions on reducing reliance on the US dollar in global trade. Trump has portrayed the bloc as a deliberate challenge to America’s financial supremacy, saying it was “set up to hurt us” and “degenerate our dollar.”
Even as India clarified that it does not support de-dollarisation, Trump issued a new warning — threatening to impose 100% tariffs on Brics nations if they continued to push for alternatives to the dollar.
