US President Donald Trump has denied a New York Times report that his close ally, billionaire Elon Musk, would be briefed by the Pentagon on Friday on the US military’s plan for any war with China.
“China will not even be mentioned or discussed,” Trump said in a post about the Pentagon meeting on Truth Social on Thursday.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said at X that the meeting will be “about innovation, efficiency and smarter manufacturing.”
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the briefing for Musk would feature senior U.S. military officials at the Pentagon and would be an overview of several different topics, including China.
According to a New York Times report, the briefing would include 20 to 30 slides outlining how the United States would fight in a conflict with China. The newspaper cited two unidentified US officials.
Access to the closely guarded military plan would mark a sharp expansion of Musk’s role as an adviser to Trump who is leading efforts to cut U.S. government spending.
It would also fuel questions about conflicts of interest for Musk, who as head of Tesla and SpaceX has business interests in China and with the Pentagon.
The White House has previously said Musk would recuse himself if there were a conflict of interest between his business dealings and his role in cutting federal spending.
Washington and Beijing have had tense relations for years over differences ranging from access to technology, trade tariffs and cybersecurity to TikTok, Taiwan, Hong Kong, human rights and the origins of Covid-19.
