Musk-Trump fallout may jolt space; Meta hunts AI startup
Mōrena and welcome to another bitterly cold winter morning. Settle in with a cuppa and catch up on your daily dose of international business and political news.
First, US President Donald Trump warned that Elon Musk could face "serious consequences" if the billionaire businessman backed Democrats
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Scoop
an hour ago
- Scoop
'Act Responsibly For Humankind' - Palau President On Deep Sea Mining Order
Palau's president says the US order to fast-track deep sea mining is not a good idea. Deep sea mining frontrunner The Metals Company (TMC) has since confirmed it will not apply for a mining license through the International Seabed Authority (ISA), instead opting to apply through US regulations. Surangel Whipps Jr. said the high seas belongs to the entire world so everyone must exercise caution. "We should be responsible, and what we've asked for is a moratorium, or a temporary pause ....until you have the right information to make the most important informed decision," Whipps told RNZ Pacific. Whipps said it's important for those with concerns to have an opportunity to speak to US President Donald Trump. "Because it's about partnership. And I think a lot of times it's the lack of information and lack of sharing information. "It's our job now as the Pacific to stand up and say, this direction could be detrimental to all of us that depend on the Pacific ocean and the ocean and we ask that you act responsibly for humankind and for the Pacific." Trump's executive order states: "It is the policy of the US to advance United States leadership in seabed mineral development." The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) was directed to, within 60 days, "expedite the process for reviewing and issuing seabed mineral exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits in areas beyond national jurisdiction under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act". It directs the US science and environmental agency to expedite permits for companies to mine the ocean floor in the US and international waters. The Metals Company has praised the US deepsea mining licencing pathway. In a press release, its chief executive Gerard Barron made direct reference to Trump's order, titled 'Unleashing America's Offshore Critical Minerals and Resources'. He said he was heartened by its call "for a joint assessment of a seabed benefit-sharing mechanism" and was certain that "big ocean states" like Nauru would continue to play a leading role in the deep sea mining industry. There are divergent views on deep sea exploration and mining in the Pacific, with many nations, civil society groups, and even some governments advocating for a moratorium or outright ban. However, Tonga, Nauru, Kiribati and the Cook Islands have exploration contracts with mining representatives. Vanuatu's Climate Minister Ralph Regenvanu told RNZ Pacific in 2023 that Vanuatu's position is for no deep sea mining at any point. "We have a lot to think about in the Pacific. We are the region that is spearheading for seabed minerals," he said. The Cook Islands has sought China's expertise in seabed mining through "high-level" discussions on Prime Minister Mark Brown's February 2025 trip to China. Whipps said "you have to give [The Metals Company] credit" that they have been able to get in there and convince Donald Trump that this is a good direction to go. But as the president of a nation with close ties to the US and Taiwan, and the host of the PIF Ocean's Commissioner, he has concerns. "We don't know the impacts to the rest of what we have in the Pacific - which is for us in the Pacific, it's tuna [which] is our biggest resource," Whipps said. "How is that going to impact the food chain and all of that? "Because we're talking about bringing, first of all, impacting the largest carbon sink that we have, which is the oceans, right? So we say our islands are sinking, but now we want to go and do something that helps our islands sink. "That's not a good idea."
RNZ News
2 hours ago
- RNZ News
What's happening in LA? Trump's controversial immigration crackdown explained
By Elissa Steedman for ABC News Police and protesters face off on the streets of LA. Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT US President Donald Trump deployed 2000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles streets on Saturday night. The extraordinary measure is the latest escalation in a tense immigration debate the nation has been grappling with since before the election. Here's a look at what's happening in Los Angeles and what led to the protests. Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT In short, protests are continuing in Los Angeles for a third straight day. You might have heard them being referred to as ICE protests on social media. They began on Friday after immigration agents from ICE made dozens of arrests across the city over alleged immigration violations. On Sunday, 300 national guard troops were also deployed to guard a federal detention centre in downtown Los Angeles where those arrested were being held. Photo: AFP / Frederic J Brown ICE, which stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is a law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security. It is responsible for enforcing the country's immigration laws. Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT It is not uncommon for ICE to arrest people it believes are in the US illegally. But this spate of arrests comes as part of the Trump administration's controversial immigration crackdown. Trump has vowed to deport record numbers of illegal immigrants during his second term, and the White House has set ICE a goal to arrest at least 3000 migrants each day. Because of that pressure, people who were legally living in the US have been caught up in ICE raids. One of the more notable cases was the arrest of 238 men accused of being Venezuelan gang members, who were not given a day in court before they were deported to a mega-prison in El Salvador. The arrest raids were also carried out in a public manner, which Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said would "sow terror" in the community. They occurred at a hardware store, where street vendors and day labourers were swept up, a garment factory and a warehouse. "I am deeply angered by what has taken place," Bass said in a statement. "These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. "We will not stand for this." Photo: ROBYN BECK Securing the border was one of Trump's key election promises. During the presidential campaign, he argued illegal immigrants were responsible for a crime wave and described people who cross illegally into the US as "animals" who are "poisoning the blood" of the nation. While he was able to point to a handful of high-profile crimes allegedly committed by illegal immigrants, there was no data publicly available to verify the claim. Data from Texas, the only state that tracks crimes by immigration status, shows considerably lower felony arrest rates among people in the US illegally, compared to legal immigrants or citizens. But a perceived crime wave is not the only argument in favour of an immigration crackdown. The US is grappling with cost-of-living and housing crises, too, which many citizens say is only worsened by a mass influx of illegal immigrants competing for the same resources. Brenda Lee, a resident of Brooklyn, New York, told Foreign Correspondent last year she would vote for Trump because of his hardline immigration policies. "There's people that are having a hard time, you know, making ends meet," she said. "The rents are so high, we have a housing crisis, we have so many issues. "So it's like, we come first because we pay taxes." Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN Since Trump returned to office this year, ICE agents have been particularly active in California, New York and Illinois, according to analysis published by Axios last week. These states are considered "blue" because they reliably vote in favour of the Democratic Party in presidential elections. California is home to the country's largest immigrant population. About 10.6 million of its residents were born overseas, which makes up 22 per cent of the nation's foreign-born population. According to the Pew Research Center, 1.8 million immigrants in California, or about 17 percent of the total number, were undocumented in 2022. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said Los Angeles had been "invaded" by "illegal aliens and criminals". Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN It's a section of the military that can be used as reserves for the army and air force. Each state has its own unit, which answers to the relevant state governor and the president. While the national guard has assisted with crowd control in the past, Trump's call to deploy the California National Guard is considered a rather historic move. That is because he did so without the governor's approval - something no president has done since 1965 when President Lyndon B Johnson sent troops to protect a civil rights march in Alabama. California Governor Gavin Newsom has formally requested the Trump administration withdraw the troops, arguing their presence is "inflaming tensions". "Indeed, the decision to deploy the National Guard, without appropriate training or orders, risks seriously escalating the situation," his office wrote to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. - ABC
NZ Herald
5 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Trump jumps at the chance for a standoff in California over immigration
It is the fight President Donald Trump had been waiting for, a showdown with a top political rival in a deep blue state over an issue core to his political agenda. In bypassing the authority of Governor Gavin Newsom of California, a Democrat, to call in the National Guard to
