Earlier this month President Trump announced radical new taxes on foreign imports amounting to what he described as ‘Liberation Day' for the United States. It was a promise he made to American voters during last year’s election campaign but the scale of the tariffs caught many countries by surprise.

Global financial markets plunged as investors braced themselves for a shock to the flow of international trade. Faced with prolonged market turmoil, within days the US president paused most of his plans.

A to-and-fro between Washington and Beijing has left many world leaders confused who to side with, as many look towards the White House wondering if there is a detailed plan at the heart of these unprecedented few weeks.

Contributors: ● Carla Sands, Vice Chair for the Center for Energy and Environment at America First Policy Institute and former US Ambassador to Denmark ● Emily Kilcrease, Senior Fellow and Director of the Energy, Economics and Security Program at the Center for a New American Security ● Victor Gao, Chair professor at Suzhou University and Vice President at the Center for China and Globalization ● Gillian Tett, Provost of King’s College at Cambridge University and Financial Times columnist

Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Daniel Rosney Researcher: Katie Morgan and Ben Hughes Sound engineer: Nicky Edwards Production co-ordinator: Liam Morrey Editor: Tara McDermott

(Photo: US President Donald Trump holds a chart and delivers remarks on reciprocal tariffs at an event entitled Make America Wealthy Again, at the White House, Washington DC, 2 April, 2025. Credit: Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)