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Elon Musk complains about China ban on X as Donald Trump prepares TikTok reprieve

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Elon Musk complains about China ban on X as Donald Trump prepares TikTok reprieve

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Elon Musk has objected to a lack of reciprocity in the US-China tech relationship, a rare criticism from the billionaire on issues sensitive to Beijing after US president-elect Donald Trump prepared to offer a reprieve to TikTok on a ban in the US.

Musk, who has long sought to maintain close ties with Communist party officials in China, a core market and production centre for his electric car company Tesla, has for years been careful in his statements about Beijing.

But he said on Sunday that “something needs to change” after Trump said he would “most likely” extend a deadline for Chinese tech group ByteDance to divest from TikTok, which faced a ban under a US law that briefly forced it offline.

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Musk said that while he opposed banning the short-form video app on free-speech grounds, “the current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in America, but X is not allowed to operate in China is unbalanced”.

“Something needs to change,” he said in a post on X.

Asked about Musk’s comments, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Monday that Beijing welcomed any company that abided by its laws and Chinese groups abroad were obliged to follow local rules.

Responding to Trump’s proposal to push TikTok, which began restoring service in the US on Sunday, into a joint venture, Mao said Chinese groups should “decide independently” on operations and deals.

Musk’s criticism was mild compared with some of his fierce attacks on western politicians and recent intrusions into the domestic politics of countries such as Germany, the UK and Italy.

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But it highlighted the Tesla chief’s potential conflicts of interest between protecting his business interests in China and serving as a confidant to the incoming president and a government efficiency tsar.

Tesla earned almost a quarter of its sales in the third quarter from China and exported even more vehicles from its Shanghai plant to third countries.

Some analysts believe Beijing is pinning its hopes on Musk as a potential intermediary with Trump, who has vowed to increase tariffs on imports from China. Chinese officials had previously discussed using Musk as a broker to resolve TikTok’s fate in the US.

China’s vice-president Han Zheng, left, with incoming US vice-president JD Vance on Sunday. Han is set to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration © Xinhua/Shutterstock

Musk on Sunday also met Chinese vice-president Han Zheng, who will represent President Xi Jinping at Trump’s inauguration. The presence of a Chinese official as senior as Han is unprecedented at US presidential inaugurations, where Beijing is normally represented by its ambassador in Washington. 

“Han met . . . Elon Musk, and welcomed US companies including Tesla to seize opportunities and share the fruits of China’s development,” China’s state-run news agency Xinhua reported.

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Han also met business leaders from the US-China Business Council and the US Chamber of Commerce on Sunday, as well as Trump’s incoming vice-president JD Vance.

Han and Vance discussed the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl, which successive US administrations have pushed Beijing to crack down on, as well as regional stability and balancing trade, the Trump-Vance transition team said in a statement. 

US business leaders in the past have sought to play a moderating influence in often-volatile Sino-US relations, a role Beijing seems eager to encourage ahead of the second Trump administration.

Han described US business as a “backbone” of relations between the countries, and urged businesses to “play an active role as a bridge” in US-China relations, Xinhua said. 

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Trump vows to ‘take care of Cuba,’ praises Venezuela cooperation at summit

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Trump vows to ‘take care of Cuba,’ praises Venezuela cooperation at summit

President Trump signs a proclamation committing to countering cartel criminal activity at the Shield of the Americas Summit.

Rebecca Blackwell/AP


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Rebecca Blackwell/AP

President Trump on Saturday launched the Shield of the Americas Summit – a coalition of Latin American leaders – with a pledge to “take care of Cuba,” as the United States increases its intervention in the region.

“Many of you have come today and they say, ‘I hope you can take care of Cuba.’ Because you have problems with Cuba, right?,” Trump said to the gathering of Latin American leadership.

“I was surprised, but four of you said, actually, ‘Could you do us a favor?’ Take care of Cuba.’ I’ll take care of it, ok?” he continued to applause from the crowd.

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Attending the meeting were the leaders of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago. The event was hosted at the Trump National Doral Miami golf course in Doral, Florida.

His comments follow tension between Cuba and U.S. and as many Cuban-Americans are hoping for a change in regime for the communist nation.

The Trump administration has eased a blockade of Venezuelan oil, allowing some private sector oil sales to Cuba. The country has been experiencing fuel shortages and blackouts that have left millions without power, according to The Associated Press.

Since the United States’ capture and arrest of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, in January, those who wish to see Cuba’s government toppled see Trump’s stance on foreign intervention as a signal that America might similarly help orchestrate the ouster of Cuba’s Miguel Díaz-Canel.

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Speaking to the change in Venezuela’s leadership since Maduro’s capture, Trump praised acting-President Delcy Rodríguez for her cooperation with the United States.

“She’s doing a great job because she’s working with us. If she wasn’t working with us, I would not say she’s doing a great job. In fact, she wasn’t working with us, I’d say she’s doing a very poor job, unacceptable, but she’s doing a great job,” Trump said.

He continued that because of U.S. assistance, Venezuela’s economic picture was considerably sunnier because of American oil exports and forthcoming gold and mineral trades.

Trump has hailed the transition from Maduro’s leadership is the model for regime changes.

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Iran warns it will hit US bases across region hours after president’s apology

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Iran warns it will hit US bases across region hours after president’s apology

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Cleveland playground now a place of mourning for two girls found in suitcases

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Cleveland playground now a place of mourning for two girls found in suitcases

It’s called Saranac Playground, and when the weather is nice it becomes a magnet for the children who live on the east side of Cleveland.

But in recent days, this small patch of green has been visited by a stream of mourners seeking to pay their respects to two little girls who were found there stuffed inside suitcases and buried in shallow graves.

In the days since the bodies of 8-year-old Mila Chatman and her half-sibling, 10-year-old Amor Wilson, were found on Monday, a shrine of stuffed animals and flowers has grown.

So has the mystery surrounding their deaths.

Their mother, 28-year-old Aliyah Henderson, has been charged with two counts of aggravated murder.

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During her first court appearance on Friday in Cleveland Municipal Court, she was not asked about the tragedy that has landed her in handcuffs, shocked her hometown and drawn national attention.

Municipal Court Judge Jeffrey Johnson set Henderson’s bond at $2 million, citing “the nature of the allegations” and his concern for public safety.

Dressed in a blue sweatshirt and surrounded by court officers, Henderson remained impassive.

“Thank you” were the only words she uttered during the brief hearing, in response to the judge wishing her good luck.

Earlier, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Kristine Travaglini revealed at the hearing that the bodies of the little girls were “badly decomposed.”

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So far, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office has not said how and when the little girls died, but did confirm that a DNA investigation showed they were related as half-siblings.

Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy Todd said neither child had been dismembered.

Henderson, who lives near Saranac Playground, had another child living at her home when police took her into custody on Wednesday, Todd said earlier this week.

The Department of Children and Family Services has taken custody of the child, who appears to be in good health, Todd said. But she did not provide any other information about the child.

A man who had been walking his dog reported the grim discovery on Monday at the playground, which is located near an all-boys public school called the Ginn Academy.

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Responding to the 911 call, Cleveland homicide detectives confirmed the man’s dog had located the body of a young girl, and they quickly found a second shallow grave with a suitcase that contained another body.

“It was like a pile of dirt, and she stopped to sniff … and she was taking too long,” Phillip Donaldson told WEWS-TV. “So I went back and looked, and it was a suitcase that was half-buried, and I pulled it up and looked in it, and it was a head. Somebody’s head in it.”

Donaldson said that pile of dirt had been there for at least a week.

On Thursday, Deshaun Chatman, who said he was the father of Mila Chatman, visited the spot where the girl had been buried. He told local reporters that he had not had any contact with his daughter for several years. He said Henderson kept “ducking” him and that he’d been in touch with DCFS numerous times about getting custody of Mila.

“I just feel useless,” Chatman said. “I couldn’t save my daughter.”

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Asked about Deshaun Chatman’s assertion that he had been trying get custody of his daughter, Cuyahoga County spokesperson Jennifer Ciaccia in a statement called the girls’ deaths “a tragedy for their families and our entire community” and declined to disclose any further information, citing an active criminal investigation and confidentiality obligations under Ohio law.

NBC News has reached out to Henderson’s mother for comment.

Back in 2019, Henderson and her daughters were mentioned in a Cleveland Plain Dealer article about a local hospital’s program to help struggling families.

It featured a photo of a smiling Henderson holding then 3-year-old Amor on her lap and Henderson’s mother holding Mila, who was almost 2 at the time.

“I could really use the help,” Henderson said in the story.

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