MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The government of U.S. President Donald Trump seems to be sparing no expense with the broad tariffs he applied worldwide, from rocky outcrops where polar bears live in the Arctic to small tropical islands and an old British penal colony whose leader is bewildered to have been targeted by such measures.
Why did Trump impose tariffs against the “imports” from these countries? Who included them?
Trump shook the markets, manufacturers, and other sectors on Wednesday by announcing a 10% base tariff on imports, and a much higher one on products from some places, notably those with high trade surpluses with the United States.
Some countries like Russia, facing US sanctions, as well as Canada and Mexico, dealing with separate tariff measures from the United States, were left out. The Holy See, for example, also managed to avoid being included among the dozens of countries and territories affected by Trump.
This is a look at some territories affected that have little or no production, exports, or role in the global economy. So far, it has not been explained why these places were included in the list presented by the official White House account.
These are some unusual territories, apparently randomly included by the Trump government.
Jan Mayen
This small Arctic island, possibly with more bears than the 35 people who inhabit it (in winter they are only 18), is among the most peculiar places on the United States’ target list.
The only inhabitants in Jan Mayen, which has been part of Norway since 1930, are members of the Norwegian army and the Norwegian Meteorological Institute. The island, located 370 miles northeast of Iceland, is partially covered by glaciers.
The main function of the Norwegian army on the site is to oversee Norway’s sovereignty over the island, and fly C-130 Hercules cargo planes to Jan Mayen about twelve times.
Planes can only land if visibility is good, as the airport does not have instrument landing capabilities.
Tokelau
The nation, made up of three tropical coral islands and home to 1,500 people in a combined land area of 4 square miles, also faces 10% U.S. tariffs.
Tokelau is one of the smallest economies in the South Pacific and survives thanks to subsistence agriculture, fishing, and funding from New Zealand, which considers the islands one of its territories.
Christmas Island
The leader of Christmas Island, which has less than 2,000 people, said that the atoll in the Indian Ocean does not export anything to the United States.
“There is no trade between Christmas Island and the United States, except that we buy mining equipment through Tractors Singapore,” said Christmas Island county president Gordon Thomson, referring to the regional distributor of Texas manufacturing giant Caterpillar Inc.
The Australian outpost, located 225 miles south of Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, has been using American heavy machinery to extract phosphate for decades.
“The trade, if any, consists of American products being sent to Christmas Island. The only thing we export is phosphate and that goes to Malaysia, Indonesia, maybe Thailand, and a little to the Australian mainland,” Thomson pointed out.
Heard and McDonald Islands
The Heard and McDonald Islands, located in the remote Antarctic and together forming another Australian territory, in this case, uninhabited, are also on the list and subject to a 10% tariff. Only penguins live there.
The mostly arid islands between Madagascar and Antarctica have two active volcanoes and can only be reached by sea.
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island in the Pacific, another Australian territory with a population of around 2,000 people, received a more severe tariff treatment.
In its calculation, the Trump government stated that the former British penal colony charges the United States tariffs of 58%, and responded with a tariff rate of 29% on the island, whose economy revolves around tourism. It is about 1,000 miles east of Sydney.
The administrator of Norfolk Island, George Plant, who represents the Australian government on the island, is investigating what is behind this.
“As far as I know, we do not export anything to the United States,” he told the AP. “We do not charge tariffs on anything. Nor can I think of any non-tariff barrier that is in force, so we are scratching our heads.”
In statements to journalists, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese joked: “I’m not very sure that Norfolk Island, with all due respect, is a commercial competitor to the gigantic economy of the United States.”