'Ended wars, made America rich': Trump defends his tariffs, trade tussles

US President once again defended his move to impose tariffs on several nations, insisting that these trade tussles are eventually making “America rich”. The remarks from the president came on Wednesday while he was sitting with Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office.

While defending tariffs, Trump reiterated that countries around the world were taking advantage of the United States. He went on to claim that he has ended eight wars, out of which, he claimed that “five or six were resolved with the help of tariffs”.

“We are doing so well as a country right now because of tariffs. Tariffs have been used against us for many decades. That’s why we owe $37 trillion… We’re a rich country. We’re taking in money like we’ve never done before. Without tariffs, that would not be happening,” Trump told reporters at the Oval Office.

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#WATCH | Washington DC | US President Donald Trump says, "We are doing so well as a country right now because of tariffs. Tariffs have been used against us for many decades. That's why we owe $37 trillion... We're a rich country. We're taking in money like we've never done… pic.twitter.com/EV7V6lkBT9

— ANI (@ANI) October 22, 2025

He went on to repeat his claim that he resolved the India-Pakistan conflict. “I solved eight wars. Of the 8, 5-6 of them are because of tariffs. India and Pakistan, if you want to fight, that’s okay. But you’re going to pay tariffs, and they’re going to be very substantial. We’re in the midst of a trade deal, and they said, We don’t want to do that. Two days later, they call up and say they’re not going to fight anymore. They have peace. But I’ve done out of eight, I would say six times. Tariffs are vital to this country. We made a fair deal with Japan, the European Union,” he said.

Trump’s fresh defence of tariffs came shortly after he imposed heavy sanctions on two of the biggest Russian oil firms. The American leader told reporters that the sanctions are being imposed due to Putin’s reluctance to end the war in Ukraine.

Trump also confirmed the cancellation of the summit with Putin, which was supposed to take place in Budapest, Hungary. “We cancelled the meeting with President Putin,” Trump said. “It didn’t feel right to me. It didn’t feel like we were going to get to the place we had to get, so I cancelled it. But we’ll do it in the future.”

Hopes for a trade deal with China still remain

When asked about the trade tussle with China, Trump said on Wednesday that he expected to reach a trade agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and he would raise concerns about China’s purchases of Russian oil during their meeting in South Korea next week. “I think we’ll make a deal,” Trump told reporters while sitting with Rutte in the Oval Office.

He said he also expected some agreement with China to restart its purchases of American soybeans. He mentioned that a deal on nuclear arms is also possible, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had raised the possibility of a de-escalation on nuclear weapons, and China could be added to that, Reuters reported.

On Tuesday, Trump warned that the US would continue with their plans to impose a 155 per cent tariff on Chinese goods imported into the US beginning November 1. “Right now, as of November 1st, China will have about 155 per cent tariffs put on it. I don’t think it’s sustainable for them,” Trump averred.

Even at that time, the Potus admitted that he personally wished to maintain friendly relations with China. However, he claimed that years of one-sided economic dealings have left the US with no choice but to take firm action. “I want to be nice to China. But China has been very rough with us over the years because we had presidents who weren’t smart from a business standpoint. They allowed China and every other country to take advantage of us,” Trump averred. Meanwhile, China is yet to respond to Trump’s latest assertion.