The U.S. military could be caught in the crosshairs following President Donald Trump’s move to slap tariffs on some of the nation’s closest allies.
The Trump administration imposednew duties on steel and aluminum imports from the European Union, Canada and Mexico on Thursday citing national security concerns.
The tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminum imports are slated to take effect at midnight Thursday despite Secretary of Defense James Mattis’ recommendation of targeted tariffs.
Stephen Biddle, adjunct senior fellow for defense policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, argues that the fresh round of tariffs will undermine America’s ability to leverage allies to support U.S. interests.
“The U.S. grand strategy for multiple generations has been premised on the idea that we are going to collaborate with rich and powerful allies that our enemy doesn’t have and that this will advance American national security in a variety of ways,” Biddle said. “The allies in question are precisely the ones that we are now engaged in these trade disputes with.”