“Effective immediately, any country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a 25% customs duty on all transactions with the United States of America. This regulation is final and binding,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social social media site.
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The president did not explain which countries he was talking about and has not yet provided any additional details on this subject. The announcement comes against the background of anti-government protests bloodily suppressed by the regime in Tehran and Trump's threats to use force against the regime.
At the same time, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt stated on Monday that Trump prefers to resolve the crisis through diplomatic means.
The White House spokeswoman spoke out
— I think President Trump is very good at always having all possible options on the table, and airstrikes would be one of many options that the commander in chief is considering. Diplomacy is always the number one option for the president, Leavitt said during a call with reporters outside the White House.
A spokeswoman confirmed that regime representatives in Tehran called Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff over the weekend to engage in talks. She did not reveal their content, but assessed that what the regime says in private conversations is different from what it says in public. “I think the president is interested in digging deeper into these messages,” she said.
According to World Bank data, Iran's largest trading partner is China, which is responsible for over 1/4 of Iran's trade. Other significant partners include Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, India and Pakistan. Russia is also an important ally of Iran.
