 "White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday. Reuters")
Countries that haven’t negotiated a trade deal or received a tariff letter from the Trump administration will be hearing from the US about the terms of trade by the end of the day, the White House said on Thursday.
“The trade team has been working around the clock to try to be in correspondence with as many countries as possible, but if they haven’t heard from us yet, they will in the form of a letter or an executive order by midnight tonight,” Reuters quoted spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt as telling reporters at the White House.
On the US-EU trade deal, Leavitt said the agreement ensures “unprecedented access” for American businesses to the European market.
“The EU will purchase $750 billion in US energy to strengthen our energy dominance, reduce European reliance on adversarial sources, and narrow our trade deficit with the EU. The EU will also make new investments of $60 billion in the US… All these massive purchases and investments will happen by the end of 2028,” she added.
Leavitt said President Trump played a direct role in securing an “immediate and unconditional” ceasefire between Thailand and Cambodia.
“The two countries were engaged in a deadly conflict until President Trump stepped in to put an end to it,” Leavitt said, noting that Trump personally spoke by phone with both the acting Prime Minister of Thailand and the Prime Minister of Cambodia.
During those calls, she said, Trump warned that no trade discussions or agreements with the United States would proceed unless the hostilities stopped.
“Almost immediately afterwards, peace was brokered that will save thousands of lives and allow for trade negotiations with these countries to resume,” Leavitt added.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsAccording to the White House, the ceasefire is the latest in a string of international diplomatic efforts led by Trump.
Leavitt claimed the president has now “ended conflicts” between several nations, including Israel and Iran, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, India and Pakistan, Serbia and Kosovo, and Egypt and Ethiopia.
“President Trump has brokered, on average, about one peace deal or ceasefire per month,” she said. “It’s well past time that President Trump be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.”
With inputs from agencies