Trump's steel tariffs mean another battle for Ukraine

Ukraine’s steel industry is fighting a war on two fronts: the three-year long invasion from Russia, and a looming trade war from the United States.

President Donald Trump this month announced 25% tariffs on all aluminum and steel imports, an order set to go into effect on March 12. If implemented, Ukraine’s already vulnerable steel industry would face extra costs that would further weaken not only the industry, but the country at large, according to The Associated Press.

“Maintaining the tariff exemption for Ukrainian steel, including products made in the EU from Ukrainian steel, provides essential support to Ukraine as it continues to resist unprovoked military aggression from Russia,” the Ukrainian Steel Association said in a statement. “The exemption enables Ukrainian steel exporters to sustain their operations, contribute to the national budget and support the broader Ukrainian economy.”

The group said the tariffs would cost Ukraine's steel industry, which has been weakened substantially since the war began, $58 million in revenue and the government $24 million in taxes, per The Associated Press.

The tariffs aren’t the only potential source of concern for Ukraine. Trump announced this month he has talked with Russian leader Vladimir Putin over the phone, going against three years of U.S. policy. Combined with statements from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who suggested the U.S. was moving away from realizing Ukraine’s NATO membership, a big worry for Ukraine is that of no longer having Washington as an ally.

The war with Russia has torn through Ukraine’s economy, blockading trade routes and sabotaging the energy grid. An exemption from U.S. tariff policies would keep trade flowing.

“Morale is not as high as it was before. We are pretty tired here,” Serhii Zhyvotchenko, a supervisor at a steel plant, told The Associated Press. “But there is no way to go back; the only way is forward.”