Trump threatens Japan with new tariffs, says it refuses to buy American rice

President Donald Trump said Japan will soon receive a trade-related letter from the United States, suggesting possible tariff changes over what he described as the country’s refusal to import American rice.

According to Reuters, Trump said on Monday, “We’ll just be sending them a letter,” adding that he has “great respect for Japan.”

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “To show people how spoiled Countries have become with respect to the United States of America, and I have great respect for Japan, they won’t take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage. In other words, we’ll just be sending them a letter, and we love having them as a Trading Partner for many years to come.”

As reported by CNN, the statement comes ahead of the July 9 deadline when a 90-day pause on so-called “reciprocal” tariffs is set to end. Trump has previously said his administration would notify countries in writing about future tariff rates.

Japan is likely one of the countries that could be affected. Before the pause was introduced, Japanese goods were briefly hit with a 24% tariff. They are currently subject to a 10% universal rate.

Trump has not yet detailed the content of the letter or confirmed if new tariffs will be imposed.

This article has been republished from The Indian Express.