When US President Donald Trump appeared in the White House Rose Garden to announce his new tariff policy, many countries were braced for tough measures. But no one imagined he would put tariffs on uninhabited islands.

The Trump administration has imposed tariffs of between 10 per cent and 50 per cent on all trading partners. Among them are the uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands in the sub-Antarctic region of the southern Indian Ocean. Yes, you heard right: no people live there.

The news agency Axios reported that because the islands are part of Australia, they too have been brought under Trump's new tariffs. During the announcement, Trump used a poster to show which countries and territories were covered.

A document given to journalists stated that the islands impose a 10 per cent tariff on the United States, creating "currency manipulation and trade barriers". In retaliation, the United States has imposed a "discounted reciprocal tariff" on them.

The Australian government's website describes Heard and McDonald Islands as "one of the most remote and wildest places on Earth". According to the Australian Antarctic Program, reaching them by sea from the port of Fremantle in Western Australia takes about 10 days, depending on the weather.

The islands are home to protected species of penguins, seals and birds. The British newspaper The Guardian reported that there has been no human presence on the UNESCO World Heritage-listed islands for about a decade.

Responding to the decision, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said nowhere on Earth was safe.

Besides Heard and McDonald Islands, other Australian external territories on Trump's tariff list include the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island and Norfolk Island.

Norfolk Island, home to around 2,000 people, has been hit with a 29 per cent tariff, 19 percentage points higher than mainland Australia.

The report draws on NDTV.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.