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Elon Musk has criticized the lack of mutuality in US-China technology relations. As US President-elect Donald Trump prepares to ease US bans on TikTok, the rare criticism from the billionaire has come as a blow to Beijing’s focus on issues.
MuskHe has spent years trying to maintain close ties with Communist Party officials in China, a major market and manufacturing hub for electric car company Tesla, and has been a public eye on Beijing’s hot-button issues for years.
But on Sunday, “something has to change,” Trump said, adding that he may extend the deadline to divest Chinese tech group ByteDance. TiktokHe faced a brief offline ban under US law.
While Musk briefly opposed banning the video app on the grounds of free speech, he said, “The current situation where TikTok is allowed to operate in the US, but X is not allowed to operate in China, is not balanced.”
“Something has to change,” he said in a post on X.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning, asked about Mook’s comments, said Monday that Beijing welcomes any company that abides by its rules and that Chinese groups abroad are obliged to follow local laws.
In response to Trump’s proposal to push TikTok, He began to restore the service In a joint statement in the U.S. on Sunday, Mao said Chinese groups should “make their own decisions” on operations and agreements.
Musk’s criticisms have ranged from his aggressive attacks on some Western politicians to his recent 2015 campaign. The internal politics of countries like GermanyEngland and Italy.
But the Tesla boss has highlighted the conflict of interest between protecting his business interests in China and being loyal to the incoming president and the government efficiency czar.
Tesla got nearly a quarter of its sales from China in the third quarter, and even shipped more vehicles from its Shanghai factory to third countries.
Some analysts believe Beijing may moderate its hopes on Musk with Trump, who has promised to raise tariffs on Chinese imports. Chinese officials have already discussed Using Musk as a broker To resolve the fate of Tik Tok in America.
Musk also met with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng on Sunday He represents President Xi Jinping At Trump’s inauguration. It is unprecedented for a Chinese official like Han to attend a US presidential inauguration, where Beijing is traditionally represented by its ambassador to Washington.
“Han, we met. . . American companies, including Elon Musk and Tesla, are welcome to take advantage of opportunities and share the fruits of China’s development, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.
On Sunday, Han spoke with business leaders from the US-China Business Council and the American Chamber of Commerce, as well as Trump’s Vice President JD Vance.
Hahn and Vance discussed the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl, which successive US administrations have pushed Beijing to control, as well as regional stability and balancing trade, the Trump-Vance transition team said in a statement.
US business leaders have wanted to play along before. Moderating effect Beijing seems eager to bolster its role in the often volatile Sino-US relationship ahead of a second Trump administration.
Han described American trade as the “backbone” between countries and urged businesses to “play an active role as a bridge” in the US-China relationship, Xinhua reported.
