Mary Lou McDonald and Conor Murphy warned of the destabilising effects such tariffs could have on global trade.

On Monday, leaders of the Irish party Sinn Fein criticised U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to raise tariffs to 30 percent on the European Union (EU), including Ireland.

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Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald and Irish Senator Conor Murphy warned of the destabilising effects such tariffs could have on global trade and the economy of the island of Ireland.

Murphy condemned the Trump administration’s approach as “very erratic,” and called the tariff decision “a bad idea.” He also warned that tariffs would be “as damaging to the U.S. as they will be to Europe and other countries around the world.”

“There have been tariffs announced, withdrawn, dates put forward and changed, leaving a lot of uncertainty for global trade and economic relationships between countries,” Murphy added.

He stressed that “uncertainty is not a good thing,” and highlighted the urgency of the coming two weeks ahead of another key U.S. trade decision impacting Europe.

“That is a time for, I think, intense negotiations to try and ensure that we minimize the damage that may flow from the approach of the American administration,” he said.

Murphy pointed out that Ireland, with its “all-Ireland economy,” faces specific vulnerabilities due to Brexit and the risk of divergent tariff regimes between the EU and Britain. He emphasised the importance of “serious negotiations” and called on the Irish government and European representatives to be proactive and “remain at the negotiating table.”

“The goods that they produce in Ireland will become much more expensive to the United States as well, so it’s going to damage ordinary American citizens,” he warned.

McDonald described the series of U.S. tariff announcements as “volatile” and “not helpful at all.” “That poses a challenge for Ireland, for Europe, for the world,” she said.

McDonald was also critical of recent U.S. actions in other international contexts, particularly in Palestine. “They are on the wrong side of Palestine,” she said. “They need to stop arming Israel, and they’re not on their own — everybody else who is out there needs to stop as well.”

teleSUR/ JF

Source: Xinhua

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