Trump repeats claim that Switzerland ‘rips off the United States’
US President Donald Trump cited Switzerland as an example to defend his trade policy, arguing that countries such as Switzerland prosper because “we allow them to rip us off and make all this money,” he told Fox Business.
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Trump repeats claim that Switzerland ‘rips off the United States’
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When people picture Switzerland, they imagine an “ultra‑perfect” country, Trump said in an interview aired in the US on Tuesday evening. But, he argued, that image only exists because the US “allows them to make all this money”. Trump added that he could list around 40 other countries he believes benefit in the same way.
+ How US tariffs affected the Swiss economy
In the interview, the president again pointed to the US’ $40 billion (CHF30.6 billion) trade deficit with Switzerland. He also revisited the phone call he had last summer with the then Swiss president, Karin Keller‑Sutter. At the time, he said, he assumed he was speaking to the country’s “prime minister”.
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Lessons from the US-Swiss tariff dispute: when the ends justify the means
As he did in his speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos last January, Trump again remarked on how repetitive Keller‑Sutter had been during their call. She repeatedly stressed that Switzerland was a small country. “I couldn’t get her off the phone,” he said. Instead of lowering tariffs, he went on, he raised them to 39%.
In the autumn, fresh talks helped ease tensions. A controversial visit by Swiss business leaders, who arrived with expensive gifts for Trump, was among the factors that led to tariffs being cut to 15%.
At the WEF, the US president said he had lowered tariffs because he did not want to harm the Swiss public. Both in Davos and in his interview with the US network, he argued that, without the US, Switzerland would get “nothing at all.”
Asked to comment, the finance ministry, headed by Keller‑Sutter, told the Keystone‑SDA news agency that it trusted the Swiss public to interpret Trump’s remarks appropriately.
Investments are part of the customs agreement
According to the US president, his trade policy appears to be paying off. He told Fox Business that many companies unwilling to absorb the tariffs have since moved their production to the US.
Swiss pharmaceutical giants Roche and Novartis, for example, plan to invest billions in new manufacturing sites in the US. These investments form part of the customs deal reached with the Trump administration in November, which also includes a further $200 billion in planned US investments by Swiss firms. In return, punitive US tariffs on a range of products are due to be cut from 39% to 15%.
Translated from French by AI/sp
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