US Treasury Secretary: More than 75 countries have requested trade agreements
Follow-up - INA
US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant confirmed that more than 75 countries have contacted the United States to negotiate new trade agreements following President Donald Trump's decision to suspend tariff increases for 90 days for most countries, while raising tariffs on Chinese imports to 125%.
Speaking at the American Bankers Association conference, Besant noted that "many countries, including Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam, have expressed interest in negotiating trade agreements with the United States."
He added that "this move aims to build a united front to address trade issues with China."
In addition, Besant confirmed that "the US administration has approximately 70 negotiations pending with foreign governments," noting that "these tariffs represent a negotiating ceiling that could be lowered if the countries involved do not take retaliatory measures."
These developments come amid escalating trade tensions between the United States and China, with the US raising tariffs on Chinese imports to 125%, escalating the trade dispute between the two countries.
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(See MEMRI TV clip No. 12063, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. At Shangri-La Conference: The Gap Between China's Words And Actions In The West Philippine Sea Is Growing, June 2, 2025) The State Of Multilateral Institutions For the past 80 years, the rules-based international order upheld by the United Nations and other multilateral institutions has fostered global stability that allowed nations to thrive in relative peace. In Asia, it paved the way for the post-war recovery and economic success of Japan, South Korea, and those in Southeast Asia. But the world is changing. Global interconnectedness – through migration, trade, and security alliances – has never been greater. The war in Ukraine, for example, has driven up energy and commodity prices across Asia. The conflict between Israel and certain terrorist groups in the Arab world has disrupted supply chains around the world. Furthermore, tensions in strategic chokepoints like the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait and the South China Sea send ripples through global trade. In today's world, events in one region inevitably have consequences far beyond their borders. Amid recent conflicts and disputes, multilateral institutions have faced increased stress in maintaining peace and security. The mechanisms which were once effective in blocking acts of aggression and in restoring order are no longer as effective as they used to be. This is attributed to gridlocks in decision making, the failure to promote dialogue among disputing parties and the snail's pace by which reforms adapting to change are carried out. Legal and normative gaps are widening in the resolution of territorial disputes, in cybersecurity breaches, in protecting underwater infrastructure, in regulating artificial intelligence, and in the proliferation of lethal autonomous weapons – just to name a few. 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The Philippines commits to advocate constructive solutions if and when it is elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2027-2028. In the end, there is no alternative for the rules-based-order to maintain peace, security, and the continued prosperity of the world. We must improve the framework we already have. The Proxy War China sent no top defense officials to the Shangri-La Dialogue.[2] Instead, the Chinese delegation was led by representatives from the National Defense University. Its mission was to inject Chinese propaganda messages into the forum. One of them asked the Philippine Defense Secretary why the Philippines is allowing itself to be a proxy of America amid the U.S.-China "cold war." Secretary Teodoro emphasized that while the U.S.-China rivalry is raging, it must not be made the overarching narrative of all conflicts. Doing so unfairly portrays the legitimate actions of states like the Philippines as being done at the behest of stronger powers. It undermines the agency of smaller states. Secretary Teodoro also reiterated that the Philippine's actions in the South China Sea are not a function of the U.S.-China rivalry. Rather, they are a result of China's overreach in its nine-, ten-, or 11-dash line, which changes according to China's need, which is illegal and has no basis in international law. China's Territorial Grab Another CCP outfit asserted that while Malaysia and Vietnam have disputes with China, both manage their difference through peaceful dialogue, so why couldn't the Philippines do the same? To this, Secretary Teodoro's responded with barbed, elegant clarity. Let me quote him verbatim: "Thank you for the propaganda spiels disguised as questions. First, the comparison between the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam. Let us not forget that while we are members of ASEAN, we are [all] sovereign countries, each with their own territorial integrity and sovereignty. And I am sure that if what China is doing to the Philippines is done to Malaysia or to any ASEAN country, you will see a different reaction [from them]. And certainly, as an ASEAN brother, the Philippines will stand up with that ASEAN brother in [their] time of need – in support and in defense of what is international law and UNCLOS. As members of UNCLOS, we are all committed to support it. "On the dialogue with China, unfortunately, in my personal opinion, the fact that the question was asked in the way it was, engenders a deficit of trust in China's words vis-à-vis its actions. "Just look back to 1995 to a place called Mischief Reef.[3] There were a few bamboo structures erected there, and China said that these were temporary havens for fisherfolk. Now you have an artificial military island, heavily militarized. "China says that it has peaceful intentions. Why does it continue to deny the Philippines its rightful provenance under international law and UNCLOS? 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And that's what we see, and that is the biggest stumbling block to dispute resolution or dialogue with China – that deficit of trust which I think any rational person or any person that is not ideologically biased with freedom of thought and freedom of speech, will agree with me."[4] Chinese Hypocrisy China wants to convey two messages to the world. First, that it indeed possesses sovereign and legal rights over the South China Sea by virtue of its self-conjured non-dash line. Second, that the Philippines is obstructing China from exercising its rights by engaging in legal maneuvers and provocative activities, aided by the United States and other countries that lean toward western doctrine. China cannot have it both ways. It cannot illegally grab the sovereign territories of another nation and also play the victim. 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Masigan's articles in MEMRI are also published in The Philippine Star.
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