US President Donald Trump reacted positively to the decision by the new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham to fully open up the oil fields in the North Sea.
The White House chief called these fields one of the best sources of raw materials in the world, noting that the reserves there could last for hundreds of years and many areas have yet to be explored.
According to Trump, this step is capable of pulling the United Kingdom out of an economic crisis and turning it into one of the richest countries in the world by initiating an influx of investments and new jobs in the country.
The US leader also deemed completely absurd the fact that London spends billions of dollars annually purchasing oil from Norway. In an interview with journalists, he stated: 'The potential of the UK is very high, but it all starts with the beginning of oil production in the North Sea.'
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva condemned the new tariff policy introduced by Donald Trump's administration, which provides for a 25% duty on most goods imported from Brazil into the United States of America starting July 22.
This new tariff regime is the first measure within the policy developed by Donald Trump's administration and could potentially cover dozens of other countries. According to information from the U.S. Trade Representative, this additional duty is being imposed based on the law on investigating unfair trade practices. Washington noted that Brazil has not achieved expected results in negotiations on digital trade, illegal deforestation, and other issues.
It was also stated that similar policies could be applied to countries such as China, European Union member states, India, Japan, South Korea, and Mexico.
The head of Brazil announced that the country would file a complaint with the World Trade Organization and activate its 'Law on Mutual Retaliatory Measures'. State Secretary Marco Rubio sharply stated that Lula should not engage in friendly negotiations with Washington, noting that 'tariffs are payment for the policy of the President of Brazil.'
The new duties apply to goods such as sugar, agricultural machinery, textiles, electrical appliances, paper, and steel products. However, a number of goods are exempt from restrictions, including coffee, beef, aviation and aircraft spare parts, energy products, rare earth metals, honey, and organic honey.
Furthermore, an upcoming inspection regarding Brazil was mentioned, which could result in the imposition of an additional 12.5% tax, potentially increasing the total tariff burden on some goods to 37.5 percent.
According to the publication Axios, US President Donald Trump raised the issue of the current deployment of Israeli military forces in Syria and Lebanon during a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump expressed concerns that the presence of Israeli troops in Syrian territory could increase regional instability and lead to new clashes. In this regard, he asked Netanyahu to begin the phased withdrawal of Israeli military units from Syria.
The issue of Israeli forces in Lebanon was also discussed during the conversation. However, Netanyahu stated that maintaining a military presence in certain areas is necessary to ensure the security of Israel's borders.
According to the publication's information, this conversation took place after Trump's meeting with the leader of Syria. Experts believe that the United States administration seeks to reach a security agreement between Israel and Syria.
