President Trump Raises Tariffs After Disliking Swiss President Karin Keller’s Tone

A rude Swiss President.

In a recent Fox Business interview, President Donald Trump recounted imposing a 30% tariff on Swiss imports to address what he described as a longstanding $42 billion U.S. trade deficit with Switzerland, which he claimed had enjoyed near-zero tariffs while exporting heavily to America.

President Trump explained that after setting the initial rate, he received an “emergency call” from then-Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter (whom he mistakenly referred to as the “prime minister”), during which she repeatedly emphasized Switzerland’s status as a “small country” and urged him not to proceed, a plea he found overly repetitive and aggressive in tone.

President Trump stated that because he “didn’t really like the way she talked to us” so he decided against lowering the tariff—and raised it to 39%.

This anecdote, shared amid broader discussions of his reciprocal trade policies, drew attention for highlighting a personal element in tariff decisions, though the tariffs were later negotiated down to 15% following further talks and Swiss commitments to U.S. investments.