MalcolmTurnbull: “Well it was quite a process and it actually started in 2017. There was quite a lead time between him foreshadowing the tariffs and when they were actually imposed. I met with him on several occasions, probably three or four occasions in person, and we had many telephone calls. It was quite a detailed engagement, but it was very direct. The arguments I put to him was simply that this was against America’s interest. I said America has the best free trial trade deal with Australia it possibly could, it has no tariffs no quotas on any exports to Australia. It has a large trade surplus, and in any event putting a 25% tariff on steel would simply increase the cost of roofing steel in California. Because the reason BlueScope send steel to California to make colorbond, a product we are all familiar with, is because it is cheaper to ship steel from Port Kembla to California than it is to truck or rail it across the United States. And the economics very simply are that it would still be cheaper than American steel sourced from the midwest or the East Coast with the 25% tariff, you just make the product more expensive so the American consumer would lose. I guess the US treasury would win, but it would involve adding to construction costs in California. Trump engaged with those arguments”.
Malcolm Turnbull: “The point was it was a clear line of argument focused on what was in his interest. Now there are people that will say to you that Australia should talk about ANZUS and AUKUS and 100 years of mateship. That is nonsense. America has a great many allies,quite a few of them much more consequential than Australia, so we shouldn’t kid ourselves. So whoever the advocate is in this case, really if you’re dealing with Trump it has to be the prime minister, has to focus on the interest of the United States and explain to Trump that it’s not in their interest to do it. But if he is determined to put a tariff on every single country's export of steel to the United States, it may be those arguments won’t work a second time".
Listen to the full interview on ABC radio here: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/the-radio-national-hour/malcolm-trump-on-negotiating-with-trump/104920330