President Donald Trump’s sweeping new reciprocal tariff policy targets over 180 countries. However, major powers like Russia, Belarus, and North Korea—along with key trading partners Canada and Mexico—are absent from the list. Trump previously hinted at the possibility of easing some of the sanctions imposed on Russia.
WASHINGTON APRIL 3: President Donald Trump’s sweeping new reciprocal tariff policy targets over 180 countries, aiming to counter unfair trade barriers. However, major powers like Russia, Belarus, and North Korea—along with key trading partners Canada and Mexico—are absent from the list, raising questions about the strategy behind the exemptions. While tiny nations and uninhabited territories face tariffs, these geopolitical heavyweights remain untouched. Was this a calculated move or a surprising oversight?
One country that did not feature on the list was Russia. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt as saying this was because existing US sanctions on Russia “preclude any meaningful trade”. Nations with even less trade with the US – such as Syria, which exported $11m of products last year according to UN data – were on the list. On Thursday, Russian media also argued that their country was not on the sweeping tariffs list because of existing sanctions.
Trump previously hinted at the possibility of easing some of the sanctions imposed on Russia as part of an effort to broker a ceasefire and a peace deal in Ukraine.
Some 60 countries or trading blocs were hit with additional duties higher than the 10% baseline, including the EU (20%), China (34%), and Taiwan (32%). Canada and Mexico were among those excluded due to the already existing 25% tariff.
