A Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee said that he is concerned about how the timing of President Trump’s tariff announcement could undermine efforts to curb North Korea’s nuclear program.
Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut said that it is an “open secret” that China has engaged in a trade war with the United States and that he is open to retaliating with tariffs imported from the nation, though he is concerned that Trump administration could have taken a more thought-out approach.
“China is the key ultimately to getting North Korea to the negotiating table in a meaningful manner,” Mr. Murphy said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “But when you are putting this issue on the table and setting off a trade war it makes it a lot harder to do something with North Korea.”
Mr. Trump has yet to lay out the details of his plan. He has signaled that it will include 25 percent tariff on steel imports and the effort is motivated by the Chinese “dumping” steel in the United States.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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