They don’t. Not really.

America is nothing economically without its trading partners. And that goes for every country, not just the US.

Accepting what the US does is a stupid idea on any country’s part because Trump’s tariffs have nothing to do with “normal trading”. If anything, they’re abnormal.

And they should be treated as such. Laughed off. Ridiculed. And most certantly not appeased. This entire situation isn’t unlike the Hitler Sudetenland stuff.

Whatever Mr. President says Mr. President gets. Not really a good foreign policy move. It was percisely the US who set up penalties for countries “restricting trade”. Why should other countries not hold the US to the rules?

Both import and export tariffs are barriers to trade. Since Mr President’s childish demands are appeased, soon enough, those countries appeasing will start “reciprocal” tariffs on Mr President’s percieved enemies. Why? Because it’s Mr President’s next logical step.

Now, short of all countries that decided on appeasig the US make a sharp U-turn, what’s done is done.

But, should they decide on such a course of action, they’d isolate America on the world market, which would dissuade Trump from keeping his mercantilism up.

The alternstive is isolating themselves from others, together with America.