'Entirely unjustified,' Australia lashes out at US tariffs on its steel, aluminum

KARACHI, Pakistan/ISTANBUL

Australia on Wednesday described US tariffs imposed on its steel and aluminum as "entirely unjustified."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that Canberra will not impose retaliatory tariffs, but said US President Donald Trump's tariffs are an act of "economic self-harm," Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported.

The White House confirmed it will not grant Australia or any other country an exemption from the tariffs, which are part of Trump's plans to bring more manufacturing to the US.

A 25% tariff on Australian steel and aluminum is set to become effective from Wednesday.

"Australia has a close relationship with the United States. Friends need to act in a way that reinforces, to our respective populations, the fact that we are friends," Albanese was quoted by ABC. "This is not a friendly act. But it is imposed on every country, that is important.”

Earlier, Foreign Minister Penny Wong warned that ordinary Americans would feel the pain of the "unprovoked and unjustified" tariffs.

"Guess who will pay the price of this? It's actually Americans, American consumers. These tariffs will harm the ordinary American and the American economy," she told Sky News.

"(It is) not the way to treat a friend and partner," she added.

Australia’s former ambassador to the US during the final year of Trump's first presidency, Arthur Sinodinos, also said Albanese should “play it cool” on Trump's tariffs, the media outlet reported.

Sinodinos said there was likely nothing Albanese could have done to have changed the outcome, saying that an exemption possibility was less than 50% and “unlikely” considering “the atmosphere here in Washington at the moment.”

“The Trump administration believes in tariffs. He (Trump) says it's the most beautiful word in the English language,” said the former ambassador.

But Sinodinos noted that the door would likely stay open for Australia to strike a deal with the US.

He proposed that Australia’s abundant mineral resources could play a role in securing an agreement with the US, given that Australia needs to utilize them and Canberra will not “deploy them with China.”

Australia is the world's largest lithium producer and also possesses high-quality cobalt, manganese, tungsten and vanadium, which are crucial for various industries, including the production of batteries, electronic, and renewable energy technologies.