On Sunday (February 22), US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stated that following the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn most of the tariff measures implemented by former President Trump, no country that has not reached a trade agreement with the United States has indicated plans to withdraw from the agreement.
Greer was interviewed by several media outlets on Sunday regarding the Supreme Court’s decision. In an interview with CBS’s “Face the Nation” program, he mentioned that he has already communicated with EU trade representatives and will be in discussions with officials from other countries.
“I haven’t heard from anyone saying the agreement is cancelled,” he said. “They want to see how this situation unfolds.”
Last Friday, following the Supreme Court’s ruling to overturn most of the tariffs imposed by Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the Trump administration temporarily raised tariffs by 10%. On Saturday, Trump ordered the tariff rate to increase to 15%, the highest level allowed by law.
Greer told CBS that Trump decided to increase the temporary tariff rate within 24 hours of the Supreme Court ruling, reflecting the “urgency of the situation” and the necessity to reduce significant trade imbalances with other countries.
Later, on ABC’s “This Week” program, Greer mentioned that the Trump administration will utilize other legal tools to reshape trade policy, such as the “Section 301” clause for addressing unfair trade practices and the “Section 232” clause for national security reasons, both of which have withstood legal challenges.
Greer also revealed to ABC that the US Trade Representative’s Office has initiated investigations into Brazil and China, and plans to conduct investigations in various areas such as industrial overcapacity (involving multiple Asian countries) and unfair trade practices in rice trade (some countries provide high subsidies for rice trade).
He stated that he expects the Supreme Court’s ruling and subsequent tariff adjustments to not affect Trump’s decision to visit China at the end of March or early April.
He mentioned that the purpose of meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping is not to argue about trade issues but “to maintain stability, ensure that China fulfills their commitments in our agreement to purchase American agricultural products, Boeing aircraft, and other products.”
“I don’t think this will have a practical impact on this meeting,” Greer added.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also stated during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” program on Sunday that the tariff refund issue will be ruled on by lower courts.
“We will follow their rulings, but it may take several weeks or even months to receive their verdict,” he said.
(Translated and rewritten from a report by Reuters)