New York/Washington, Feb 20 (PTI) With the US Supreme Court striking down President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, a former trade official here cautioned on Friday that "walking away" from deals announced in recent months does not seem to be in the cards for America's partners.

In a 6-3 vote, the judges found that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not authorise the imposition of duties. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel A Alito Jr. and Brett Kavanaugh dissented in the court's decision.  Senior Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute and former Acting Deputy US Trade Representative Wendy Cutler said that the Supreme Court's decision on IEEPA should come as little surprise.

"The President took a serious risk in using IEEPA as the legal basis for many of his tariff threats and hikes, and this gamble did not pay off," she said.

She added that "ironically", Trump will end up relying on statutes such as sections 301, 232 and 122 that were "clear delegations from Congress on tariff authority under specified conditions.  "Our trading partners were well aware of the risks the President faced in using IEEPA as the basis for reciprocal and other tariffs. Nevertheless, they chose to conclude deals with Washington, convinced by Washington that other statutes would be utilised to keep the tariffs in place," she said.

"Like US observers, they are waiting to see the Administration's contingency plans, which should be rolled out soon," she said.

"Walking away from the deals announced in recent months does not seem to be in the cards for our partners. They know all too well that such a step could end up leaving them in a worse position with the White House,” Cutler added.

“This all could have been avoided if clear tariff adjustment statutes had been initially relied upon, as during his first term and by all previous Presidents,” she said.  New York Attorney General Letitia James said the "illegal tariffs” caused immense economic chaos, raising costs for families and businesses throughout the country.

"The Supreme Court has agreed that this administration has no authority to impose massive new taxes on a whim. This is a critical victory for the rule of law and our economy, and I will keep fighting to protect New Yorkers from destructive policies that make life less affordable." Representative Gregory Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the Supreme Court's decision confirms "what we argued in the bipartisan amicus brief I co-led on behalf of Members of Congress: IEEPA was never meant to be used to impose tariffs. The court has now made clear that Trump's actions exceeded the law.

"While I'm glad that SCOTUS has struck down Trump's harmful tariff regime, it should not have taken a Supreme Court Ruling to stop it. For more than a year, Republicans repeatedly blocked Democrats’ efforts to overturn these clearly illegal taxes that have burdened American families." PTI YAS ZH ZH