Following Canada and Mexico, Australia was exempted from the steel tariff of the US. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said there were no strings attached to the exemption. He said that “I know exactly what was discussed and there is no, sort of, request for any change or addition to our security arrangements.” He also said that Australia is not going to initiate any complain to the WTO regarding the tariffs. He added that “obviously as a country that will be exempt from those tariffs, we don’t have a basis to bring a complaint,” he said.
Trump tweeted over the weekend that Turnbull is “committed to having a very fair and reciprocal military and trade relationship. Working very quickly on a security agreement so we don’t have to impose steel or aluminum tariffs on our ally, the great nation of Australia!
