Trump says tariff talks will be finished over 'next 3-4 weeks'
U.S. President Donald Trump has said that tariff talks with scores of countries will be finished "over the next three to four weeks," claiming he has already made 200 deals, as South Korea and other trading partners are trying to secure exemptions from his administration's "reciprocal" and sectoral tariffs, Yonhap reports.
Trump made the remarks in Tuesday's interview with TIME, which was released Friday, a day after Seoul and Washington held high-level trade talks during which they set a broad framework for future talks on tariffs and economic cooperation issues.
"I would say, over the next three to four weeks, and we're finished, by the way," Trump said, according to a transcript posted on the magazine's website.
He added, "I'll be finished. Now, some countries may come back and ask for an adjustment, and I'll consider that, but I'll basically be, with great knowledge, setting ..."
The president said that he has made 200 deals "100 percent," but he did not specify those deals.
His remarks signaled the possibility that tariff negotiations with trading partners could conclude earlier than July 8 when his 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs expires.
The Trump administration started imposing reciprocal tariffs, including 25 percent duties on South Korea, on April 9, only to place the pause them shortly afterward to allow for negotiations.
During Thursday's high-level trade talks, South Korea and the United States concurred on joint efforts to craft a "package" agreement on tariffs and other matters by July 8.
In the interview, he also said the U.S. pays "billions of dollars" to help defend South Korea and other allies, noting that his administration will deal with defense cost issues separately from trade talks with those countries.
"Are we paying for their military? You know, as an example, we have Korea. We pay billions of dollars for the military. Japan, billions for those and others," Trump said, according to a transcript of the interview posted on TIME's website.
"But that, I'm going to keep (it as) a separate item, the paying of the military."
He brought up the defense cost issue as he enumerated various different factors that he will consider before setting what he called a "fair price of tariffs for different countries."
"I will set a price, and when I set the price, and I will set it fairly according to the statistics, and according to everything else," Trump said.
"For instance, do they have the VAT system in play? Do they charge us tariffs? How much are they charging us? How much have they been charging us?"
The interview took place at the White House.