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📰 White House Issues Sweeping Tariffs

📰 White House Issues Sweeping Tariffs

and Korean Court upholds Yoon Impeachment

Billy Robinson & Ross Crabtree
April 04, 2025

Hello and welcome to Geopolitics Daily,

Today’s headlines are dominated by the global ripple effects of President Trump’s sweeping tariffs—from the New York Stock Exchange to Brussels, and across Africa and Southeast Asia—while our main story explores the constitutional crisis they may pose.

Elsewhere, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni navigates coalition tensions as EU rearmament plans sow domestic discord, and Baghdad moves to scale back its ties with Yemen’s Houthi movement.

More details below ⤵️

Top 5 Stories

1️⃣ 🇺🇸 U.S. stock market has worst day since Covid following White House tariffs: The New York Stock Exchange recorded its steepest losses since the early pandemic era, closing Thursday with a sell-off reminiscent of June 2020. The S&P 500 fell 4.9%, the Dow dropped 4%, and the Nasdaq plummeted 5.9%—its worst single-day decline since March 2020. The sharp downturn, which erased trillions in market value, reflects mounting investor concern that President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs could trigger a recession. Despite the turmoil, Trump struck a defiant tone, likening the economic shock to major surgery. “The markets are going to boom. The stock is going to boom. The country is going to boom,” he told reporters, insisting the tariff measures are part of a deliberate strategy that will ultimately strengthen the economy.

2️⃣ 🇮🇱 🇵🇸 🇸🇾 Israeli airstrikes kill medics, UN staff, and Children in Gaza; Syria also bombed: At least 77 Palestinians were killed on Wednesday alone as Israeli airstrikes targeted civilian infrastructure, including an UNRWA clinic in Jabalia, and a school sheltering displaced families, in what legal experts regard egregious violations of international law. The assault follows strikes on medical personnel and UN staff, while over 300 children are estimated to have been killed since the breakdown of the ceasefire. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz announced the military would seize "large areas" of Gaza to establish expanded security zones, intensifying the deadly campaign. Gaza’s health ministry reported over 1,000 deaths since Israel shattered the ceasefire last month, while Syria condemned parallel Israeli strikes in Damascus and Hama, urging the global community to halt what it called continued violations of international law.

3️⃣ 🇺🇳 🇪🇺 🇫🇷 🇺🇸 Von der Leyen calls tariffs ‘a major blow to world economy,’ Macron suggests freezing U.S. investments: European leaders have strongly criticised U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff measures, warning of serious economic fallout and urging renewed negotiations to avoid a trade war. French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the tariffs as “brutal,” suggesting French investment in the U.S. be paused, while German and Spanish leaders labelled the move an attack on global trade. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the measures a “major blow” to global markets and confirmed that the EU is preparing countermeasures, including retaliatory tariffs on iconic U.S. goods. With 70% of EU exports to the U.S. affected and an €80bn impact projected, Brussels is also considering action against American tech and banking sectors should talks fail.

4️⃣ 🇮🇷 🇺🇸 Trump escalates rhetoric against Iran amid renewed nuclear tensions: U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a stark ultimatum to Iran, warning that failure to agree to a nuclear deal would result in devastating airstrikes “like they’ve never seen before.” His comments mark an intensification of earlier threats and coincide with reports of B-2 stealth bombers deployed to Diego Garcia. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, dismissed the likelihood of an attack but promised forceful retaliation if provoked. While senior figures like Secretary of State Marco Rubio favour a hardline stance, Trump’s advisers, including Steve Witkoff and Elon Musk, appear open to indirect diplomacy. Tehran has rejected direct talks, citing mistrust from Trump’s 2018 withdrawal from the previous nuclear deal.

5️⃣ 🇰🇷 Suspended president Yoon’s impeachment upheld by Korean court: South Korea’s Constitutional Court unanimously upheld the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, ruling that his December declaration of martial law was unconstitutional and posed a severe threat to democratic governance. Acting President Han Duck-soo will remain in office until elections are held within 60 days, promising stability and adherence to the rule of law during the transition. In a written message, Yoon expressed regret and gratitude, calling his presidency an honour while apologising for failing public expectations. The court declared Yoon’s actions a grave abuse of power that disrupted national stability, violated constitutional limits, and warranted his removal; he now faces separate criminal charges of insurrection.

Major Story

🇺🇸 🇻🇳 🇹🇭 🇲🇾 🇪🇺 TRUMP’S TARIFF BLITZ RISKS GLOBAL ECONOMIC DISARRAY AND CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS

In a stunning reversal of decades-long bipartisan trade policy, President Trump announced sweeping tariffs on nearly all U.S. imports, abandoning the postwar global economic order in favour of protectionism. Invoking emergency powers, he imposed a universal 10% duty on all goods entering the U.S., escalating to as much as 49% for select countries. This marks the most aggressive use of tariffs since the 1930s, framed by Trump as retaliation against alleged trade abuses—despite a lack of economic consensus supporting his claims.

Winners, Losers, and Legal Minefields

While Canada and Mexico were spared new tariffs, others like Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia—key players in recent supply chain realignments—faced some of the highest rates. Critics note that the administration's tariff calculations lack credible economic methodology. Moreover, Trump’s use of emergency authorities to circumvent Congress poses a constitutional dilemma—seen as an ‘egregious violation’ of the constitutional separation of powers—triggering Senate pushback and the threat of legal challenges.

Global Fallout and Retaliation Risks

The EU and other major economies are expected to retaliate, with American farmers and tech giants likely bearing the brunt. Trump’s belief that tariffs permanently incentivise domestic production signals little room for negotiation. Businesses, lawmakers, and voters are already expressing alarm as costs rise and supply chains face chaos.

A Crisis of Governance

Beyond economics, this moment raises profound questions about presidential power, democratic institutions, and the U.S. role in the world, writes Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Edward Alden If unchecked, Trump’s actions risk not only destabilising global trade but eroding the very foundations of constitutional governance. Whether the courts, Congress, or the public can check this trajectory remains to be seen—but history warns that trade wars rarely end well.

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Other News

1️⃣ 🇮🇶 🇾🇪 🇺🇸 Iraq to reduce Houthi engagement after U.S. pressure: Iraq has pledged to restrict Houthi operations within its borders to non-military, civilian spheres such as media and cultural outreach, sources told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. The decision follows heightened U.S. pressure amid renewed Houthi activity in the Red Sea and escalating regional tensions. Though the group has maintained a presence in Baghdad since 2018, the government is now curtailing its engagement, reportedly halting political activities and limiting movement. With the U.S. increasingly targeting Houthi-linked sites, Iraqi officials view the group’s continued presence as a liability and are under international scrutiny to ensure it does not use Iraqi territory for armed operations.

2️⃣ 🇮🇹 🇺🇦 🇪🇺 Italy PM Meloni walks tightrope as EU rearmament sparks coalition strain: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni faces mounting tension within her coalition over Europe’s rearmament push and the EU’s deepening role in Ukraine. While Meloni remains committed to transatlantic ties, she has been cautious about aligning too closely with Paris and Berlin’s calls to build a strong, independent European military force. Her hesitation reflects both ideological belief and political pragmatism, as right-wing coalition partner Matteo Salvini appeals to voter skepticism over increased defence spending and involvement in Ukraine. Caught between Salvini’s nationalist populism and the pro-European stance of coalition partner Antonio Tajani, Meloni must navigate growing domestic and geopolitical pressures without alienating either side.

3️⃣🇳🇬 🇿🇦 🇺🇸 🇨🇳 Trump’s Tariffs threaten Africa-U.S. trade ties, pushing the continent closer to China: President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs have upended longstanding U.S.-Africa trade ties, with new duties threatening to dismantle the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and deepen economic instability across the continent. The tariffs, including a universal 10% duty and even harsher levies on countries like Nigeria and South Africa, jeopardize duty-free exports that have created thousands of jobs since AGOA’s inception. Experts warn that this shift could prompt African economies to pivot further toward China, already their top trading partner. As African governments scramble for redress, concerns grow that rising export costs, job losses, and eroding investor confidence will disproportionately hurt fragile economies and entrench poverty.