Donald Trump is ramping up the pressure - relying once again on the familiar mix of threats, ultimatums, and public displays of power. By Wednesday, all countries that trade with the United States are expected to sign new agreements. Otherwise, they will receive formal notification of new, higher U.S. tariffs - effective August 1. That is the message from the White House, which is once again trying to achieve foreign policy results through economic coercion. The announcement was not unexpected, but the speed and severity with which it is now being implemented were surprising. Starting Monday, the first letters warning of tariffs are to be sent to foreign governments. At the same time, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated in a television interview Monday morning that \u201cseveral new trade framework agreements\u201d would be presented within the next 48 hours. Trump's goal, Bessent said, is not the number but the \u201cquality of the deals.\u201d His inbox is said to be \u201cfull of new offers,\u201d triggered by the threat of rolling back tariffs to the level of April 2 - the day Trump announced a sweeping increase in import duties to 10 to 25 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As the U.S. rushes toward new trade deals, international resistance is mounting. The BRICS nations - a bloc composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa - jointly condemned the latest U.S. tariff plans and the airstrikes on Iran on Sunday. Although the name \u201cTrump\u201d was avoided in their final declaration, the tone was unmistakable. Israel was also criticized for its military actions in the Middle East - Russia, by contrast, was spared entirely, and Ukraine was mentioned only in passing. Meanwhile, China sought to portray the BRICS group as a platform for \u201copenness, inclusion, and win-win cooperation.\u201d The organization is \u201cnot directed against any particular country,\u201d a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Monday. Trump appeared unimpressed - and declared on his social media platform that any country aligning itself with \u201canti-American BRICS policies\u201d would face an additional 10 percent punitive tariff. The second day of the BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro is thus likely to be far more tense than originally planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tensions are also rising on the domestic front. The simmering conflict between Trump and Elon Musk escalated dramatically over the weekend - with noticeable effects on the markets. Tesla stock fell by 6.5 percent after Musk publicly announced that he would be founding his own third party. The background is the intra-party dispute over Trump\u2019s budget and spending policies. Musk, once one of Trump's most important donors and supporters, criticized the recent legislative packages as \u201cirresponsible\u201d and \u201ceconomically toxic.\u201d Trump fired back on Truth Social, saying Musk had \u201ccompletely gone off track\u201d in recent weeks. As if that weren\u2019t enough, Trump also announced a visit to the flood disaster zone in Texas on Friday. Severe storms over the Independence Day weekend claimed at least 82 lives there, including many participants in a Christian summer camp. At least a dozen girls remain missing. Trump stated that he would \u201cprobably be there on Friday\u201d - but the exact timing would still be coordinated with security agencies. What remains is the image of a president fighting on multiple fronts - against international alliances, economic dependencies, former allies, and the political reality of a deeply divided nation. Trump\u2019s deadline diplomacy, as it is unfolding these days, is less a reflection of traditional foreign policy than a mirror of his presidency: loud, confrontational, transactional - and fraught with risks.<\/p>\n
Donald Trump erh\u00f6ht den Druck \u2013 und setzt dabei auf die altbew\u00e4hrte Mischung aus Drohung, Ultimatum und \u00f6ffentlicher Machtdemonstration. Bis Mittwoch sollen alle L\u00e4nder, die mit den Vereinigten Staaten Handel treiben, neue Abkommen unterzeichnen. Andernfalls werde man ihnen schriftlich die neuen, h\u00f6heren US-Z\u00f6lle ank\u00fcndigen \u2013 mit Wirkung zum 1. August. So die Botschaft aus dem […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[47,7,41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7752","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us-business","category-topstory","category-trump-s-world"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/kaizen-blog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Social-Kaizen3.webp?fit=900%2C508&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"Rainer Hofmann","author_link":"https:\/\/kaizen-blog.org\/en\/author\/admin\/"},"yoast_head":"\n