Trump slaps tariff on uninhabited islands – not even sparing penguins from his ruthless Liberation Day blitz
DONALD Trump hasn’t spared anyone from his sweeping new trade crackdown as he even imposed tariffs on uninhabited Antarctic islands – home only to seals, birds and penguins.
The White House’s list of places hit by the president’s “reciprocal” tariffs also includes the sub-Antarctic Heard and McDonald Islands.
These are remote volcanic outposts of Australia where no one lives and where a permit is required just to visit.
Critics were quick to ridicule the move, pointing out the barren glaciers and penguin colonies targeted in Trump’s tariff tantrum.
Trump’s former communications director Anthony Scaramucci joked: “The penguins have been ripping us off for years.”
Former Congressman Tom Malinowski added: “The Heard Island and McDonald penguins have been taking advantage of us for too long – it’s about time we stood up to them!”
Meanwhile, the Washington Post national security editor quipped: “For far too long, the penguins on the uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands in the Antarctic have ripped off American taxpayers.
“That ends today”.
A baseline 10% tariff was slapped on the Australian territory despite the fact that it’s completely uninhabited, with the last known human visitors arriving nearly a decade ago.
According to the Australian Antarctic Program, the islands are “teeming” with seals, penguins and seabirds – but not a single permanent resident.
Even more bizzarely, trade data shows the US imported $1.4 million worth of “machinery and electrical” goods from the territory in 2022.
What exactly those goods were – and how they got there – remains a mystery.
Trump’s tariffs also hit other remote Australian external territories, including Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Norfolk Island – lumped with separate levies despite being part of Australia.
While most received a standard 10% tariff, Norfolk Island was slugged with a whopping 29%, nearly triple the rate.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: “Nowhere on earth is safe. Norfolk Island has got a 29% tariff.
“I’m not quite sure that Norfolk Island, with respect to it, is a trade competitor with the giant economy of the United States, but that just shows and exemplifies the fact that nowhere on earth is safe from this.”
Norfolk Island, which lies 1,000 miles northeast of Sydney and is home to just over 2,000 people, was listed as exporting $655,000 worth of goods to the US in 2023 – including $413,000 in leather footwear.
But local administrator George Plant disputed the figures, saying: “There are no known exports from Norfolk Island to the United States and no tariffs or known non-tariff trade barriers on goods coming to Norfolk Island.”
Other remote regions dragged into Trump’s global trade war include Jan Mayen, a barren Arctic island governed by Norway with no permanent population.
The British Indian Ocean Territory, which is exclusively occupied by UK and US military personnel at Diego Garcia naval base, was also dragged into the list.
Even those military goods weren’t spared – with the UK hit by a 10% tariff overall.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt reposted a link to the U.S. Trade Representative’s website, saying: “To learn about the methodology behind President Trump’s reciprocal tariff calculations, visit USTR’s website.”
Also on Trump’s hit list: Jan Mayen, a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean with no permanent population, and the British Indian Ocean Territory, which is home only to UK and US military personnel.
It comes as Washington is now warning the world to not hit back on Trump’s tariffs.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged countries to “sit back, take a deep breath, don’t immediately retaliate” after President Trump unveiled his explosive new trade programme.
The move has since sparked fears of a fresh global trade war.
But Bessent urged the world to keep calm, telling CNN: “Doing anything rash would be unwise.”
“If you retaliate, that’s how we get escalation.”