World Briefing: April 2, 2025
President Donald Trump is set Wednesday to announce a barrage of self-described “reciprocal” tariffs on friend and foe alike. The new tariffs — coming on what Trump has called “Liberation Day” — is a bid to boost U.S. manufacturing and punish other countries for what he has said are years of unfair trade practices. But by most economists’ assessments, the risky move threatens to plunge the economy into a downturn and mangle decades-old alliances. The White House is exuding confidence despite the political and financial gamble being undertaken. “April 2, 2025, will go down as one of the most important days in modern American history,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at Tuesday’s briefing while adding that the new tariffs will take effect immediately. The reciprocal tariffs Trump plans to announce follow similar recent announcements of 25% taxes on auto imports; levies against China, Canada and Mexico; and expanded tariffs on steel and aluminum. Trump has also put tariffs against countries that import oil from Venezuela and plans separate import taxes on pharmaceutical drugs, lumber, copper and computer chips. None of the warning signs about a falling stock market or consumer sentiment turning morose have caused the administration to publicly second-guess its strategy. White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has suggested that the new tariffs would raise $600 billion annually, which would be the largest tax increase since World War II. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told lawmakers that the tariffs would be capped and could be negotiated downward by other countries, according to the office of Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla. But the White House has yet to confirm policy details, despite Trump saying on Monday that he had made his decision. Importers would likely pass along some of the cost of the taxes on to consumers. The Budget Lab at Yale University estimates that a 20% universal tariff would cost the average household an additional $3,400 to $4,200 - AP
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz says the military is expanding its ground assault on Gaza and plans to “capture extensive territory” that will be added to the so-called buffer zone in the Strip. This comes as Israeli forces continue bombarding Gaza, killing dozens of people, including 12 in an attack on southern Khan Younis. Tahani Mustafa, from the International Crisis Group, says most analysts aren’t surprised Israel has expanded its military assault to seize more land in Gaza and “depopulate” Palestinians from the territory. “Many of us anticipated these evacuation zones were going to be expanded in the coming weeks and months in order to concentrate Palestinian populations into these so-called ‘safe zones’, which we know over the last 17 months of open warfare that there is no such thing as safe zones,” Mustafa told Al Jazeera.
The death toll from the earthquake in Myanmar is now at 2,886, the military says, while the number of people injured is 4,639. There are 373 people still missing. These are figures released by Myanmar's military government, which has played down the death toll in past natural disasters. The actual death toll from Friday's quake is believed to be much higher, as rescue and recovery efforts continue. Separately, Myanmar's military fired at a Chinese convoy that was bringing aid into quake-hit areas Tuesday night. The Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), an armed rebel group, said military troops shot at a convoy of nine vehicles using heavy machine guns as it was passing through the Naung Cho township in the northern Shan state, en route to Mandalay. The TNLA said the convoy had informed the junta of its route and aid delivery plans. However the military said it was not notified that the convoy would be passing through, and that it opened fire because did not stop. No one was injured, the junta claims, adding that it is investigating the incident - BBC
The Chinese foreign ministry today urged certain people in the Philippines not to make "unfounded comments" regarding Taiwan, warning "those who play with fire will burn themselves." Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun's remarks at a regular press conference came in response to Philippine armed forces chief Romeo Brawner telling soldiers to "start planning for actions in case there is an invasion of Taiwan…If something happens to Taiwan, inevitably we will be involved," Brawner said in a speech on Tuesday. China's foreign ministry also warned the Philippines against threatening "regional peace" after the United States said it had approved the possible sale of US$5.58 billion in F-16 fighter jets to Manila. "The Philippines' defence and security cooperation with other countries should not target any third party or harm the interests of a third party. Nor should it threaten regional peace and security or exacerbate regional tensions," said the spokesman - Bangkok Post
Western military leaders will discuss the possible deployment of troops to Ukraine who would monitor a potential cease-fire in the conflict with Russian and be part of the country’s new security structure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly video address. “This is our starting point: the Ukrainian army must be strong enough, and on this foundation, the entire security architecture is built,” Zelensky said. “A meeting will take place in just a few days -- on Friday (April 4) -- with representatives of our partner states -- these will be military representatives.” France and Britain have expressed a willingness to send troops as part of a so-called coalition of the willing to monitor a potential cease-fire. But Russia has strongly opposed any deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine. In his video address, Zelensky also said Ukraine has now shared “all the necessary information regarding Russia’s violations in the energy sector” with its US partners. He said there were strikes on April 1 in Kherson, including a Russian drone that targeted an energy facility and equipment “entirely deliberately and purposefully” and part of the city was left without electricity - RFE/RL
Cases of HIV have more than doubled in the Middle East and North Africa over the last decade, new research shows. The number of new HIV infections in five countries – Jordan, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, and Lebanon – have risen by 116 per cent since 2010 and are expected to rise even further, according to a report from the charity Frontline Aids. Ongoing conflicts and displacement, which have placed people in the region more at risk of HIV infection, are partly to blame for the rise, the report’s authors say. High levels of stigma in the region – including laws banning homosexuality – have also created barriers for vulnerable populations to access life-saving HIV prevention and treatments. At least 22,962 cases of HIV were recorded in 2023, compared to less than 11,000 cases in 2010. The rise bucks global trends, which have seen a 39 per cent decrease in new HIV infections over the same period. “This is a crisis. The MENA region is being left behind. Without urgent investment and action, we could see the HIV epidemic escalating at an unprecedented rate,” said Golda Eid, Programmes Lead at Frontline AIDS - The Telegraph
