Donald Trump’s new tariffs could worsen modern slavery, say experts

Sowetan · 🇿🇦 public South Africa · Jun 05, 2026 · 647 words · By Reuters Agency

US-EU Trade Relations Global Forced Labor Trade Policy vs. Human Rights

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What to know about US-EU Trade Relations

US President Donald Trump’s threat to slap new tariffs on trade partners the US accuses of failing to crack down on forced labour will do little to fight modern slavery — and could even make things worse, experts, business groups and some human rights groups…

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

7 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

In its latest trade salvo, the Trump administration proposed additional duties of 10% or 12.5% on imports from 60 countries for failing to curb trade in goods made with forced labour, an assertion that US trading partners rejected.

Common ground

The plan from the US trade representative’s office comes from a section 301 unfair trade practices investigation designed to help restore Trump’s emergency tariffs, struck down by the US Supreme Court in February.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this US-EU Trade Relations story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that the trade deal sealed with Washington last year that capped the US tariff rate on most EU goods at 15%?
How does this story connect US-EU Trade Relations with Global Forced Labor over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.sowetan.co.za/news/world/2026-06-05-donald-trumps-new-tariffs-could-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 1

verified Verified 1

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Claim 1: “the trade deal sealed with Washington last year that capped the US tariff rate on most EU goods at 15%”

CORROBORATED

Wikipedia and multiple trade analysis sources (Coface, etc.) confirm the 'Turnberry Agreement' (or similar framework) capped US tariffs on most EU goods at 15% in 2025.

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web search NEUTRAL — The framework agreement provides for 15% tariffs on all European exports and 0% tariffs on certain US exports. ... It was proposed to replace the previous ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agreement_on_Reciprocal,_Fair,…

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web search NEUTRAL — A closer look at the agreement · US tariff ceiling of 15% for most EU exports · Zero or near-zero tariffs for a number of important product groups · Protecting ...
https://commission.europa.eu/topics/trade/eu-us-trade-deal_e…

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web search NEUTRAL — Concluded in the summer of 2025 as Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs of up to 30% on European goods, the Turnberry Agreement capped this level at 15%.
https://www.coface.com/news-economy-and-insights/eu-us-a-tra…

help

Claim 2: “Germany, with the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act, and France, with a similar law, have already established national standards regarding forced labour”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found in the search results to verify the specific national standards of Germany and France regarding forced labor.

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Claim 3: “the Trump administration proposed additional duties of 10% or 12.5% on imports from 60 countries for failing to curb trade in goods made with forced labour”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results and a Congress.gov reference confirm that the USTR proposed a 10% tariff for economies failing to enforce forced labor laws as part of a Section 301 investigation in June 2025.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Melania Knauss Trump (born Melanija Knavs; April 26, 1970) is a Slovenian and American former model serving as the first lady of the United States since 2025, a role she previously held from 2017 to 2…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melania_Trump

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald Trump's second and current tenure as the president of the United States began upon his inauguration as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. Trump, a Republican, previously served as the 45th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_presidency_of_Donald_Tr…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 4: “The plan from the US trade representative’s office comes from a section 301 unfair trade practices investigation”

CORROBORATED

Al Jazeera and multiple web search results explicitly state that the proposal from the USTR's office stems from a Section 301 unfair trade practices investigation.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Section 301 of the US Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. § 2411) authorizes the president to take all appropriate action, including tariff-based and non-tariff-based retaliation, to obtain the removal of an…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Section_301_of_the_Trade_Act_o…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Special 301 Report is prepared annually by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) that identifies trade barriers to United States companies and products due to the intellectua…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_301_Report

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — During his second term as President of the United States, Donald Trump enacted a series of steep tariffs affecting nearly all goods imported into the country. From January to April 2025, the overall a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariffs_in_the_second_Trump_ad…

+ 4 more evidence sources

info

Claim 5: “The U.S. is among the top 10 countries with the largest number of people living in modern slavery, Walk Free said”

SINGLE SOURCE

While Walk Free's Global Slavery Index is cited in the evidence, the provided snippets do not explicitly state that the United States is among the 'top 10 countries' with the largest number of people in modern slavery; they provide general global stats and mention that 70% of enslaved people live in 10 countries, but do not list the US in that top 10.

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web search NEUTRAL — The Walk Free Foundation rated 162 countries based on the prevalence, or incidence, of modern slavery. The study found that tens of millions of people are living in slave-like conditions.
https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/thirty-million-people-…

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web search NEUTRAL — In some countries, the number of enslaved people is especially high. Five countries alone account for 61% of all people believed to be living in modern slavery, and 70% of all enslaved people live in …
https://armlebanon.org/10-countries-with-the-most-slaves/

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web search NEUTRAL — An estimated 50 million people were living in modern slavery on any given day in 2021, an increase of 10 million people since 2016.Walk Free’s flagship report, the Global Slavery Index (GSI) provides …
https://www.walkfree.org/global-slavery-index/

verified

Claim 6: “The USTR report criticised the EU’s Forced Labour Regulation, which starts to apply in December 2027”

VERIFIED

Multiple authoritative sources confirm the EU Forced Labour Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2024/3015) applies from December 14, 2027.

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web search NEUTRAL — In line with international efforts to eliminate forced labour from supply chains, the Forced Labour Regulation draws a clear line: from 14 December 2027, no ...
https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/goo…

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web search NEUTRAL — The EU Forced Labour Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2024/3015) bans products made wholly or partly with forced labour from the EU market and applies from 14 ...
https://trustrace.com/knowledge-hub/eu-ban-on-forced-labor-r…

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web search NEUTRAL — This regulation applies to economic operators importing, exporting or selling products into or from the EU, and it takes effect in December 2027. The Forced ...
https://www.squirepattonboggs.com/insights/publications/eu-f…

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Claim 7: “Nearly half of all forced labour cases in the private economy are found in export-related sectors: manufacturing, construction, agriculture and fishing, and mining”

CORROBORATED

Two separate web search results explicitly repeat the phrasing that nearly half of forced labor cases in the private economy are in export-related sectors (manufacturing, construction, agriculture/fishing, and mining).

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web search NEUTRAL — Nearly half of all forced labour cases in the private economy are found in export-related sectors: manufacturing, construction, agriculture and fishing, and mining. The eu comparison.
https://www.omanobserver.om/article/1190734/world/americas/t…

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web search NEUTRAL — Nearly half of all forced labour cases in the private economy are found in export-related sectors: manufacturing, construction, agriculture and fishing, and mining. The EU Comparison.
https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/trumps-latest-tariff…

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web search NEUTRAL — Forced Labour, Modern Slavery, and Trafficking in Persons in the Fisheries...
https://www.ilo.org/topics-and-sectors/forced-labour-modern-…

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Claim 8: “According to the International Labour Organization’s most recent global estimates, there are 27.6-million people in forced labour — an increase of about 2.7-million since 2016”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources cite the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates of 27.6 million people in forced labor, noting an increase of 2.7 million since 2016.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The list of International Labour Organization Conventions contains 193 codifications of worldwide labour standards. International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions are developed through tripartite…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_International_Labour_O…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The following list of countries by labour productivity ranks countries by their workforce productivity. Labour productivity can be measured as gross domestic product (GDP) or gross national income (GN…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_labour_pr…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations (UN) agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 u…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Labour_Organizat…

+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 9: “The EU ban covers products made with forced labour worldwide, regardless of the country of origin”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided or found in the search results to verify the scope of the EU ban regarding worldwide application regardless of origin.

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Claim 10: “Trump’s emergency tariffs, struck down by the US Supreme Court in February”

CORROBORATED

Al Jazeera, SCOTUSblog, and a Wikipedia entry for 'Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump' all confirm that the US Supreme Court struck down Trump's emergency tariffs on February 20, 2026.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Associate_Justice_of_the_Supre…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest-ranking judicial body in the United States. Its membership, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869, consists of the chief justice of the United State…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_justices_of_the_Suprem…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_St…

+ 4 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.