WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said he used tariffs and trade measures to stop wars, claiming that several conflicts were avoided during his presidency.
"Of the seven wars I stopped, four were because I had tariffs and trade, and I was able to say, 'If you go fight and want to kill everybody, that is okay, but I am going to charge you each a 100% tariff when you trade with us.' They all gave up..." Trump said.
He added, "We are taking trillions of dollars in tariffs and stopping wars due to tariffs... Other countries did it to us and now we are doing it to other countries."
Trump's remarks came as US Vice President JD Vance defended the imposition of secondary tariffs on India, calling them part of Washington's strategy to apply "aggressive economic leverage" against Russia over the war in Ukraine.
Speaking in an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press", Vance said the Trump administration is making it harder for Moscow to profit from its oil economy through measures that include tariffs on India.
Vance said, "I think this question betrays a fundamental misunderstanding of where we are. The President has applied aggressive economic leverage, for example, the secondary tariffs on India, to try to make it harder for the Russians to get rich from their oil economy. He has tried to make it clear that Russia can be reintegrated into the world economy if it stops the killing, but they are going to continue to be isolated if it doesn't."
When asked about Secretary Marco Rubio's doubts that sanctions would force Russian President Vladimir Putin into a ceasefire, Vance said sanctions remain an option.
"Sanctions are not off the table, but we are going to make these determinations on a case-by-case basis. What we do think is actually going to exert the right kind of leverage to bring the Russians to the table? You said sanctions were not going to lead to a ceasefire, I think that's obviously correct. If we look at the way Russians have concluded themselves, they don't want a ceasefire. They don't want to cease for complicated reasons," he said, as quoted by NBC News' "Meet the Press".
The Vice President said the US still has "a lot of cards left to play" and stressed that the Trump administration has already applied more economic pressure on Moscow than previous governments.
Responding to criticism that Washington has not imposed similar measures on China, the largest buyer of Russian oil, Vance said, "We have 54 percent tariff on PRC right now, so we have already applied pretty hefty sanctions on the Chinese and we have had a number of conversations at all levels of government to try to encourage the Chinese to be better partners in bringing this war to a close."
Vance also suggested that the US could reduce tariffs on some countries if progress is made with Russia, or increase them further if needed.
He added, "We are applying aggressive economic pressure to bring this war to a close. Maybe we will apply additional pressure, or maybe we feel like we are making progress, and we will dial that pressure back."
When asked about Russia-Ukraine negotiations and what guarantees Ukraine may receive, the Vice President underlined Washington's security commitments.
"It is providing the Ukrainians the kind of security guarantees that ensure the country is not going to be invaded again. This is why I think we have made a lot of progress, even though we are not there yet," Vance said.
Highlighting US diplomatic efforts, he added, "We are trying to negotiate as much as we can with both the Russians and the Ukrainians to find a middle ground to stop the killing."
"I think what the President has tried to do here is try to engage in very aggressive, very energetic diplomacy because this war is not in anyone's interest. It's not in Europe's or the United States' interest. We don't think it's in Russia's or Ukraine's interest to keep going, so we're going to keep on pushing for a diplomatic solution," the Vice President said.
