Understandably in his US Senate confirmation hearing, Dr Sinha evaded the question on whether he supported Mr Trump’s tariffs on Singapore.
This, and his recent comments also not acknowledging the unilateral change to the rules being applied globally, reinforce the concerns of many trading partners that the Trump administration does not feel bound by existing commitments to free trade. “While this borders on the surreal, it does provide a fairly accurate reflection of the Trump administration’s approach to trade relationships: The only interests that matter are US interests and trade agreements are observed only when convenient,” Stephen Olson said.
