Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stated on Sunday that he intends to discuss new trade tariffs with U.S. President Donald Trump. The statement followed a Washington policy change this week that applied new duties to 60 trading partners, including Australia. The Australian government has characterized the measures as unjustified and is seeking their removal through bilateral dialogue.
The U.S. administration implemented the tariffs on Friday, citing a failure by those nations to sufficiently curb the trade of goods produced by forced labor. Under the new measures, imports from Australia and 37 other nations face a 12.5% tariff. The action coincided with the expiration of a temporary 10% global tariff previously in place.
Prime Minister Albanese said Australia would address the matter at every level of the diplomatic relationship. He noted that Australia maintains modern slavery provisions and is currently working to strengthen oversight of supply chains. In a previous communication following his government's re-election, Albanese emphasized a focus on trade stability between the two nations.