Hey there! Have you ever traded snacks with your friends at school? Imagine if someone started putting rules on which snacks you could trade or added extra costs. That’s kind of what’s happening in the world right now!
At the Munich Security Conference in Germany, leaders from around the globe got together to chat about important issues. One big topic was tariffs. Tariffs are like taxes that countries add to products they buy from each other. Some leaders are worried that these extra taxes can cause problems for everyone.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said, “Protectionism offers no way out, and arbitrary tariffs produce no winners.” This means that trying to protect your country’s businesses by making it harder to trade doesn’t help anyone in the long run.
Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, agreed. She said that trade wars and tariffs “make no sense” because they can make things more expensive for families and businesses on both sides.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also shared his thoughts. He warned that ignoring rules and not trusting each other can lead to bigger problems. “The absence of rules must not become the guiding principle of a new world order,” he said.
So what’s the big idea? These leaders are encouraging countries to work together and trade fairly, without extra barriers like tariffs. Just like how it’s more fun to share and trade fairly with friends, countries want to do the same!
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
