The U.S. President-elect has warned of imposing tariffs and ceasing trade with countries that refuse to accept the return of illegal immigrants deported by the United States.

"I will send them back to their countries, or we won’t do business with those nations," President-elect Donald Trump said in a December 12 interview with TIME, after being named the magazine’s Person of the Year for 2024.

Border security and immigration are among the key policies Trump plans to prioritize during his second term in the White House. Throughout his campaign, he repeatedly claimed that illegal immigrants are "invading" the U.S., accusing other countries of "dumping criminals" and allowing people with bad records to find their way into America.

"I want them all gone. These countries must take their people back. If they don’t, we won’t trade with them, and we’ll impose very high tariffs. When they send goods here, they’ll face heavy taxes and have a very hard time doing business with the U.S.," Trump declared.

Tariffs are a tool Trump often highlighted in his foreign policy plans. He has threatened to impose 100% tariffs on goods from emerging economies in the BRICS bloc if they attempt to replace the U.S. dollar in international trade. He also warned of 25% tariffs on goods from neighboring Mexico and Canada and an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports. All three nations are major trading partners of the U.S.

When asked about his plans to deploy the military for deporting illegal immigrants, and whether this would conflict with U.S. laws, Trump reiterated his view that the wave of illegal immigration constitutes an "invasion." He argued that the situation compels him to utilize the National Guard and that he is prepared to mobilize all military resources to enforce his policies within the bounds of the law.

Both Democratic and Republican presidents in the past have deployed the National Guard to support U.S. Border Patrol in monitoring the Mexican border and preventing illegal crossings. However, no administration has previously used the military to assist with apprehending and deporting illegal immigrants.

Tom Homan, whom Trump has appointed as the "border czar" to lead deportation efforts under the new administration, told Fox News on December 8 that the U.S. Department of Defense will be tasked with providing logistical support, infrastructure development, intelligence, and target identification for the deportation program. However, he assured that the military would not directly participate in arrests, leaving that responsibility to immigration enforcement agencies.

Trump has not ruled out the possibility of building additional detention and deportation facilities, although his priority is to repatriate illegal immigrants as quickly as possible. "I will do whatever it takes to get them out of this country, as long as it works," Trump said. "We’ll still allow people to come to the U.S., but they must do so legally."

In a December 8 interview with NBC, Trump announced his goal of deporting all illegal immigrants from U.S. soil within the next four years.

According to a January 2022 report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, approximately 11 million illegal immigrants reside in the United States. The American Immigration Council, a policy research organization, estimates that it could cost the government around $1 trillion and take more than a decade to deport all illegal immigrants.

(Sources: NY Post, Reuters)