US plans to impose tariffs on Iran’s trade partners; Kazakhstan could be affected

The U.S. plans to levy tariffs to any country maintaining business relations with Iran / Photo: Shutterstock, photo editor: Milosh Muratovskiy

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he would impose 25% tariffs on all business activities with the U.S. for countries conducting business with Iran, Reuters reported.

Tariffs

«Effective immediately, any country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a tariff of 25% on any and all business conducted with the United States of America,» Trump wrote in a post.

He described the order as «final and conclusive» but did not specify how it would be implemented or on what legal basis.

What this means

Tariffs are paid by American importers, effectively making it more expensive for Iran’s partners to export goods to the U.S. Iran exports oil and other products to China, Turkey, Iraq, the UAE and India, which may be the countries most affected. Among the nations expanding their economic ties with Iran is Kazakhstan, which imports from Iran various goods and exports its grain, meat and vegetable oil to the country. 

The Chinese embassy in Washington condemned Trump’s statement and pledged to take all measures it deems necessary to protect its interests and oppose «illicit unilateral sanctions and extraterritorial jurisdiction,» emphasizing that there are no winners in trade wars.

Protests in Iran

Trump’s announcement comes amid widespread anti-government protests in Iran — the largest in recent years. According to the U.S.-based human rights group HRANA, 599 people have died since demonstrations began on Dec. 28, including 510 protesters and 89 members of the security forces. The unrest initially stemmed from economic hardships but has since evolved into calls to replace the existing government.

The situation is further complicated by an almost complete internet shutdown. According to NetBlocks, normal internet connectivity in Iran has fallen to around 1% of typical levels.