In a move that is baffling and disconnected from economic reality, President Donald Trump’s tariffs take aim at some of the world’s most remote and unpopulated territories, including icy islands, military outposts, and a former whaling station.
Announced on Wednesday, the sweeping tariffs primarily target major economies like China and the European Union, but in the fine print are tariffs on places with little to no economic activity.
Among them are the Heard and McDonald Islands, which are an uninhabited, ice-covered UNESCO World Heritage Site in the southern Indian Ocean.
The islands, described by the CIA World Factbook as “bleak” and “rocky,” have had no permanent residents since 1877, when seal hunters abandoned the area.
Still, they now face a 10% US tariff.
“The Heard Island and McDonald penguins have been taking advantage of us for too long — it’s about time we stood up to them!” joked former Democratic Congressman Tom Malinowski in a sarcastic Twitter/X post.
The tariffs also hit the Cocos Islands, an Australian territory of 600 people that exports ships to the US, and Norway’s Jan Mayen, a “desolate, mountainous” island with no permanent population beyond military personnel and has no economy at all.
Other targets include Tokelau, a New Zealand-administered South Pacific territory of three atolls and 1,600 people.
With annual exports worth roughly $100,000, its inclusion on the tariff list has left experts puzzled.
“These places aren’t competitors — they’re barely on the map,” said trade analyst Claire Dupont.
“It’s like taxing a lemonade stand to fight a supermarket chain.”
Perhaps the hardest-hit location is Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a French archipelago off Newfoundland’s coast with 5,000 residents.
Known for exporting shellfish, its products now face a 50% US tariff, which is higher than the 20% imposed on France.
Lesotho, a small African nation surrounded by South Africa, is the only other place hit with 50% tariffs, despite sending 20% of its $900 million in annual exports to the US, including diamonds and textiles.
Even strategically critical sites were not spared.
The British Indian Ocean Territory, home to the Diego Garcia military base shared by US and British forces, will see a 10% tariff on its fish exports, though there’s no record of who fishes there or buys the products.
Similarly, the Marshall Islands, a North Pacific US ally hosting a key missile-testing base, faces 10% tariffs despite the US defence obligations under a bilateral agreement.
“This isn’t just random — it’s nonsensical,” said Dupont.
“Taxing allies and empty islands undermines the very idea of tariffs as a tool for fair trade.”
The Trump campaign has defended the tariffs as necessary to protect American industries, but opponents argue the policy’s random approach risks alienating partners and harming US interests.
“How does taxing a deserted island help American workers?” asked Malinowski.
“It doesn’t. It just makes the whole effort look unserious.”
With the list spanning from penguin habitats to vital military installations, the tariffs highlight a flawed strategy.
“When your trade policy includes places with more glaciers than people, it’s time to ask: What’s the endgame here?” said Dupont.
For now, the only certainty is confusion and a lot of very surprised penguins.
