Israel Moves to Ban Forced Labor Imports to Avoid New US Tariffs

The Israeli government is urgently working to prevent the imposition of new US tariffs on imports from Israel, announced under President Donald Trump's administration. According to reports, Professor Avi Simhon, the economic advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is leading negotiations with the US government while preparing a government resolution to be presented at the upcoming cabinet meeting on Sunday. This resolution would ban the import of products made with forced labor into Israel.

This initiative responds to a significant shift in the Trump administration's legal strategy. After the US Supreme Court limited the use of emergency powers for imposing global tariffs, the administration adopted a new legal approach focusing on trade investigations targeting countries allegedly failing to prevent the import and marketing of goods produced by forced labor. Israel has been included on a list of about 60 countries subject to these new tariffs, facing a potential increase from 10% to 12.5% on exports to the US unless it meets the new requirements or obtains an exemption through diplomatic talks.

Sources familiar with the matter revealed that Simhon has already begun drafting the resolution aimed at removing Israel from the list of countries deemed insufficient in addressing forced labor issues. The proposed policy would align Israel with the US stance by banning imports of forced labor products. The government seeks to approve this measure swiftly, within days, to present it as part of its diplomatic and legal efforts to reduce or prevent tariff hikes.

If successful, Israel will demonstrate compliance with the new US standards on forced labor trade restrictions, strengthening its case for tariff relief or exemption.