On the 25th (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump stated that he cannot withdraw the 145% tariff imposed on China unless it opens its market.
On this day, President Trump met with reporters on board Air Force One, en route to Italy for the funeral of Pope Francis, and said, 'I will not withdraw the tariff unless China provides something substantial.'
When reporters asked, 'What is something substantial?', President Trump replied, 'Free up China.' He added, 'What we're asking is to let us in to work in China' and noted, 'We were almost able to get it, but they backed down.'
During his first term in early 2020, President Trump reached a phase one trade agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping. However, discussions have since stalled, indicating his apparent regret about the situation.
President Trump indicated the possibility of further delaying the reciprocal tariff imposition, which has been suspended for 90 days on trading partners other than China, stating, 'We will negotiate, but we will also reach an agreement.' He said, 'The tariff we set will be very reasonable, and that will be the end of the negotiation.'
On that day, President Trump wrote on social media platform Truth Social while traveling to Rome, 'Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky did not sign the final document of a very important rare earth agreement with the U.S.,' adding, 'This has been delayed for at least more than three weeks.'
He added, 'I hope this agreement will be signed immediately,' and noted, 'The comprehensive peace agreement work between Russia and Ukraine is progressing smoothly.'