US President Joe Biden said Donald Trump’s plan to impose 25 percent tariffs on Mexico could disrupt relations

U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday he hopes President-elect Donald Trump will rethink his plan to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada, which could “soil” relations with close allies.

“I hope he reconsiders this. I think it’s counterproductive,” Biden told reporters in Nantucket, Massachusetts, where he spent the Thanksgiving holiday with his family.

“We face an unusual situation in America; we are surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and two of our allies: Mexico and Canada. The last thing we need to do is start destroying those relationships.”

Trump said Monday he would impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico until they restrict drugs and immigrants crossing the border, in a move that appears to violate the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that she did not specifically discuss tariffs during her meeting with Trump on Wednesday, adding that the two agreed there would be good relations between the two countries.

After the call, Trump said Sheinbaum “agreed to stop immigration to the United States through Mexico and effectively close our Southern Border.”

But Sheinbaum said he has identified a strategy that “deales with” migrants before they reach the U.S. border.

Biden, who met with Trump at the White House earlier this month, reiterated that he wants the transition between his outgoing administration and the president-elect’s new administration to go smoothly.

“And with all the talk about what he will or won’t do, I think there may be some internal reckoning on his part,” Biden said.

Biden spoke to reporters as he visited a fire station in Nantucket and handed out pumpkin pies with his wife, First Lady Jill Biden.

When asked what he was thankful for during the holiday, Biden pointed to the recently reached ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and said he was grateful that his administration could make more progress in the Middle East, even if with some luck.

Biden said he spoke with three Americans who were recently released after being detained in China.

“I’m really happy they’re home,” she said.

Trump also threatened to impose new customs duties on China.

Biden noted that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping established a hotline between the two leaders and a direct line of communication between the two militaries.

“The one thing I’m sure about Xi is that he doesn’t want to make mistakes,” Biden said. “He understands what’s at stake.”

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