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US President Donald Trump’s Homeland Security chief arrived in El Salvador on Wednesday for talks on migrant deportations and a visit to a mega-prison housing Venezuelans expelled by his administration.Relatives and Caracas say the 238 deported Venezuelans are innocent migrants, but Washington accuses them of belonging to the Tren de Aragua criminal gang, which it has designated a “terrorist” organization.The deportations “sent a message to the world that America is no longer a safe haven for violent criminals,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on social media before her visit.She welcomed the opportunity to see for herself “the detention center where the worst-of-the-worst criminals are housed,” on the first stop of a regional tour that will also include Colombia and Mexico.Noem said she would meet Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele to discuss how the United States “can increase the number of deportation flights and removals of violent criminals from the US.”Trump invoked rarely used US wartime legislation to fly the Venezuelans to El Salvador on March 16, without the migrants being afforded any kind of court hearing.The deportations took place despite a US federal judge granting a temporary suspension of the expulsion order, and the men were taken in chains, their heads freshly shorn, to El Salvador’s maximum security “Terrorism Confinement Center” (CECOT).On Monday, a law firm hired by Caracas filed a habeas corpus petition, demanding justification be provided for the migrants’ continued detention.Bukele is hailed at home for his crackdown on violent crime — with tens of thousands of suspected gangsters sent to the maximum security CECOT facility.Human rights groups have criticized the drive for a wide range of alleged abuses.Salvadoran Minister of Justice and Security Gustavo Villatoro will accompany Noem on the visit to CECOT, considered the largest prison in Latin America.Guarded by soldiers and police, the jail has high electrified walls and a capacity for 40,000 inmates, who are denied family visits.

US President Donald Trump will announce tariffs on auto imports Wednesday, the White House said, in a move set to fuel tensions with trading partners ahead of further promised levies next week.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump would unveil the “auto industry” tariffs in an address at 4:00 pm (2000 GMT), without providing details on their extent.Since returning to the presidency in January, Trump has already imposed tariffs on imports from major US trading partners Canada, Mexico and China — as well as a 25 percent duty on steel and aluminum imports.But he previously offered automakers temporary reprieve from the levies affecting North America.Uncertainty over Trump’s trade plans and worries they could trigger a downturn have roiled financial markets, with consumer confidence also falling in recent months amid fears of the tariffs’ effects.Shortly after Leavitt’s remarks, shares in major automaker Ford slumped by 1.8 percent while those of General Motors dropped 1.9 percent.In February, Trump said US tariffs on imported cars would be “in the neighborhood of 25 percent.”The Trump administration has referred to levies as a way to raise government revenue, revitalize American industry and press countries on US priorities.But targeting imported cars could strain ties with countries like Japan, South Korea, Canada, Mexico and Germany — which are close US partners. About 50 percent of cars sold in the United States are manufactured within the country. Among imports, about half come from Mexico and Canada, with Japan, South Korea and Germany, also major suppliers.The Center for Automotive Research has previously estimated that US tariffs –- including those on metals and imported autos –- could increase the price of a car by thousands of dollars and weigh on the jobs market.- ‘Liberation Day’ -Besides the automobile industry, Trump has also been eyeing sector-specific tariffs on industries like pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.Wednesday’s announcement on autos comes ahead of April 2, which Trump has dubbed “Liberation Day” for the world’s biggest economy.He has promised reciprocal levies on the date, tailored to different trading partners in an attempt to remedy practices that Washington deemed unfair.It is unclear if sector-specific tariffs would be announced on April 2 also, with the White House noting this week that the situation remained fluid.Trump told reporters Monday that he might “give a lot of countries breaks” eventually, without elaborating.He told Newsmax on Tuesday: “I’ll probably be more lenient than reciprocal, because if I was reciprocal, that would be very tough for people.”But he added that he did not want too many exceptions.Hopes of a narrower tariff rollout had given financial markets a boost, but investors remain jittery over rapid policy changes.While Trump has invoked emergency economic powers for some recent tariffs, his auto levies may build on a previous government investigation completed in 2019, former US trade official Ryan Majerus told AFP.The probe found that excessive imports were weakening the internal economy and might impair national security.At the time, one recommendation was to institute tariffs of up to 25 percent to bolster US production of autos and parts.”The advantage with autos,” said Majerus, now a partner at the King & Spalding law firm, is that the administration “can act a lot quicker if they want, as opposed to, say in lumber or copper, where they had to launch investigations.”US trade partners have been furthering talks with Washington as Trump’s reciprocal tariff deadline looms.EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic met his American counterparts Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and trade envoy Jamieson Greer this week.Sefcovic said on social media that “the EU’s priority is a fair, balanced deal instead of unjustified tariffs.”

A US magazine published Wednesday the transcript of accidentally leaked messages laying out plans for an attack on Yemen, heaping pressure on Donald Trump’s White House and boosting calls for top officials to resign.The White House insisted that Trump still had confidence in his national security team, despite revelations in The Atlantic that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had revealed details including the times of strikes in advance.The Atlantic’s editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg reported earlier this week that he had been mistakenly added to the chat on the commercially available Signal app in a stunning security breach.The magazine initially withheld the details of the attack plans, but finally published them on Thursday after White House had insisted that no classified details were involved and attacked Goldbeg as a liar.The Trump administration doubled down on its attacks on Wednesday.Peppered with questions at a daily press briefing, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described Goldberg as an “anti-Trump hater” who “loves manufacturing and pushing hoaxes.” Leavitt would not respond directly when asked if she could definitively say that no officials would lose their jobs as Democrats called for heads to roll over the so-called “Signalgate” scandal.”What I can say definitively is what I just spoke to the president about, and he continues to have confidence in his national security team,” Leavitt told reporters.Elon Musk, the billionaire running a huge government cost-cutting drive for Trump, had “offered to put his technical experts on this” to establish how Goldberg was added to the chat, she added.- ‘Big mistake’ -Democrats in particular turned their fire on Hegseth, the former Fox News contributor and veteran who has never run a huge organization like the Pentagon before.They have also called for National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who has taken responsibility for accidentally adding the journalist to the chat, to go.Hegseth claimed the exchange about the attacks on Huthi rebels on March 15 had “No names. No targets” and said they were not “war plans.””My job… is to provide updates in real time, general updates in real time, keep everybody informed, that’s what I did,” he told reporters on a visit to Hawaii on Wednesday.Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was also included in the chat, admitted Wednesday that including the journalist was a “big mistake.”But calls mounted for Trump to sack officials over the breach. “The secretary of defense should be fired immediately if he’s not man enough to own up to his mistakes and resign in disgrace,” House Democrat leader Hakeem Jeffries told MSNBC.Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth said Trump should fire all the officials in the chat and called Hegseth a “liar” who “could’ve gotten our pilots killed.”The US House of Representatives discussed the scandal in a hearing Wednesday.- ‘First bombs’ -The Atlantic said the texting was done barely half an hour before the first US warplanes took off to hit the Huthis — and two hours before the first target was expected to be bombed.”1215et: F-18s LAUNCH (1st strike package)”, Hegseth writes, referring to F-18 US Navy jets, before adding that “Target Terrorist is @ his Known Location so SHOULD BE ON TIME.””1415: Strike Drones on Target (THIS IS WHEN THE FIRST BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP, pending earlier ‘Trigger Based’ targets).”Hegseth also writes about the use of US drones and Tomahawk cruise missiles. A short time later, Waltz sent real-time intelligence on the aftermath of an attack, writing that US forces had identified the target “walking into his girlfriend’s building and it’s now collapsed.”The story also threatens to cause further ructions between Washington and its allies, after Goldberg revealed disparaging comments by Vance and Hegseth about “pathetic” European nations during their chat.The Trump administration has stepped up attacks on the Huthi rebels in response to constant attempts to sink and disrupt shipping through the strategic Red Sea.The Huthi rebels, who have controlled much of Yemen for more than a decade, are part of the “axis of resistance” of pro-Iran groups staunchly opposed to Israel and the US. 

The first trailer for Alec Baldwin’s “Rust” — the Western film made infamous by the fatal on-set shooting of its cinematographer — was released Wednesday.The dark movie trailer shows Baldwin’s gunslinging character on the run with his grandson, who has been sentenced to hang for the accidental killing of a local rancher.”Some things in this life you can’t get back,” says Baldwin’s character, in one scene.In real life, Baldwin was pointing a gun toward cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal in New Mexico in 2021 when the weapon fired, killing her and wounding the film’s director Joel Souza.The Hollywood star was accused by prosecutors of violating gun safety rules, but his involuntary manslaughter trial collapsed last year over withheld evidence.Both Baldwin and Souza returned to finish the movie, on another set in Montana.It will now be released in limited US theaters on May 2 by tiny indie distributor Falling Forward Films.Featuring a tombstone, a hanging and several shootouts, the trailer is accompanied by the sound of a foreboding thunderstorm, intense music, and ominous dialogue.There are frequent shots of characters in silhouette or with their faces partly in shadow. Violence of all kinds — gunfights, beatings, brawls in the mud — is a clear motif.The trailer concludes with a standoff between gunmen in a small dusty room, eerily reminiscent of the scene in which Hutchins was killed.”Heaven ain’t waiting on either one of us,” says Baldwin, before the men draw guns on each other.The film has already received its world premiere, at a Polish film festival in November.Introducing the film, Souza said he had been “on the fence” about completing the movie, but was convinced to finish upon learning that Hutchins’s husband wanted her final work to be seen.Hutchins, a former journalist from Ukraine who grew up on a Soviet military base, was considered one of the industry’s rising stars.Baldwin did not attend the premiere, and it is unclear what role he will now play in promoting the film’s release.

French electrical equipment company Schneider Electric said on Wednesday it plans to invest “more than $700 million” in the United States by 2027 to boost energy security and the growth of artificial intelligence.The company, which generates more than a third of its revenue in the United States, intends to “support the country’s focus on bolstering the nation’s energy infrastructure to power AI growth, boost domestic manufacturing, and strengthen energy security”, according to a press release.”This new planned investment is expected to create over 1,000 new jobs and help Schneider Electric continue to play a leading role in shaping a more innovative, affordable, and energy-efficient future in the U.S.”, it said. The French company already employs 21,000 staff in the country.Schneider’s announcement comes amid President Donald Trump’s promise to impose “reciprocal” customs duties on all US trading partners, in the hope of attracting more foreign manufacturers.”Schneider Electric’s significant investment is a clear sign that manufacturing in America is moving forward — driving economic growth, innovation and job creation across the country,” National Association of Manufacturers President Jay Timmons was quoted as saying in the communique. 

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in the Caribbean on Wednesday looking for ways forward on violence-torn Haiti and to show support for oil-rich Guyana in its dispute with Venezuela.Donald Trump’s top diplomat landed in Jamaica, where he will attend a summit of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), before stops Thursday both in Guyana and neighboring Suriname.At the Caribbean summit, Rubio will meet the leaders of Haiti as well as host Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago.”We’ll work together to crack down on illegal immigration, violence and contraband in our region, and hold accountable those who perpetrate financial fraud,” Rubio said in a post about his trip on X.It is Rubio’s second trip south of the US border since taking office as the Trump administration focuses on preventing migration.Haiti, the poorest nation in the Americas, has been at a breaking point for years with the collapse of government authority, rampant violence and the crumbling of public health services.A Kenyan-led international security mission supported by former president Joe Biden has deployed to Haiti in hopes of bringing stability, but the troop force has come up short and violence has resumed.More than 60,000 people have been displaced in one month inside the capital Port-au-Prince in a resurgence of gang violence, the International Organization for Migration said last week.Rubio has made an exemption to sweeping cuts in US assistance worldwide to allow the continuation of support for the Haiti mission.The Trump administration has yet to announce new ideas on Haiti, beyond revoking deportation protections for thousands of Haitians living in the United States.Mauricio Claver-Carone, the US special envoy on Latin America, said Rubio hoped to speak with Caribbean nations to hear their views on Haiti.”The circumstances are dire,” he told reporters.”We are developing a strategy in order to be able to continue to support the Haitian National Police,” he said. “It is a strategy in development.”Rubio, visiting the Dominican Republic last month, said the international mission in Haiti “needs to be broadened for it to be able to eliminate these gangs.” “If that can be achieved, we need to discuss the future of Haiti,” which can include incentives for domestic manufacturing, Rubio said.- Guyana’s oil reserves -Rubio will be the third successive US secretary of state to visit Guyana with interest spiking after the discovery of major oil reserves.The South American country now has the largest crude oil reserves in the world on a per capita basis.The oil is concentrated in the Essequibo border region which is disputed with Venezuela, led by leftist US nemesis Nicolas Maduro.Guyana earlier this month denounced what it called a Venezuelan military vessel’s incursion in its waters.Venezuela denied any violation and requested a meeting between Maduro and Guyanese President Irfaan Ali, who dismissed the offer.Claver-Carone likened Guyana to oil-rich Gulf Arab nations where the United States stations troops, in recent decades due to tensions with Iran.”We want to work with Guyana in order to ensure the cooperation there and its guarantees on its security. We’ve seen the threats from Venezuela,” he said.Trump has severed a deal by Chevron to operate in Venezuela and threatened a new tariff effective April 2 for countries that buy Venezuelan oil.Ali, despite his cooperation with the United States, said that Caribbean nations have concerns they would raise with Rubio about another threatened Trump move — fines for use of Chinese-made container ships.”We have to have early conversations to ensure that we mitigate or minimize the impact on the region,” Ali said.If Trump goes ahead with the move, “it will cause tremendous spikes in the cost of freight for virtually every sector in CARICOM,” Patrick Antoine, the chief of the Caribbean Private Sector Organisation (CPSO), told AFP. 

US magazine the Atlantic on Wednesday published the full exchange of leaked messages between officials laying out plans for an attack on Yemen, as the White House fought fiercely to defend itself over the slip-up.Details including the times of strikes and types of planes used were shown in screenshots of the chat between President Donald Trump’s top officials on the commercial Signal messaging app.The story broke earlier this week after an Atlantic journalist was accidentally added to the chat, and the magazine said it was revealing full details of the attack plans now because Trump’s team insisted that no classified details were involved.The White House reacted defiantly, launching a coordinated attack in which it slammed the magazine’s journalists as “scumbags” and dismissed the story as a “hoax.””There weren’t details, and there was nothing in there that compromised, and it had no impact on the attack, which was very successful,” Trump told podcaster Vince Coglianese when asked about the latest revelations.Vice President JD Vance, who was on the Signal conversation, said The Atlantic had “oversold” the story. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who has taken responsibility for accidentally adding Atlantic journalist Jeffrey Goldberg to the chat, likewise insisted that the Signal chain revealed “no locations” and “NO WAR PLANS.”Goldberg revealed Monday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sent information in the Signal chat about imminent strikes against the Huthi rebels on March 15. The magazine — which initially said it published only the broad outlines about the attacks to protect US troops — said it had published the full details after the Trump repeatedly denied that any classified details had been included.The texting was done barely half an hour before the first US warplanes took off — and two hours before the first target was expected to be bombed.- ‘Bombs will definitely drop’ – “1215et: F-18s LAUNCH (1st strike package)”, Hegseth writes, referring to F-18 US Navy jets, before adding that “Target Terrorist is @ his Known Location so SHOULD BE ON TIME.””1415: Strike Drones on Target (THIS IS WHEN THE FIRST BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP, pending earlier ‘Trigger Based’ targets).”Hegseth also writes about the use of US drones and Tomahawk cruise missiles missiles. A short time later, Waltz sent real-time intelligence on the aftermath of an attack, writing that US forces had identified the target “walking into his girlfriend’s building and it’s now collapsed.”The full version of the chat group also revealed the informal side of the high-stakes chat, including when Waltz wrote a garbled message and Vance replied “What?” Waltz explained he was “typing too fast.”The chat included emojis of a fist, an American flag, a muscled arm and a flame.The Atlantic said its full publication Wednesday included everything in the Signal chain other than one CIA name that the agency had asked not to be revealed.It added that it had asked the government whether there would be any problem in publishing the rest of the material, given the official insistence that no secrets were shared.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt had replied insisting there was no classified material involved but adding that “we object to the release,” the magazine said.The depth of detail has fueled a furious outcry from Democrats in Congress who are accusing the Trump officials of incompetence and putting US military operations in peril. The House of Representatives discussed the scandal in a hearing Wednesday.The story also threatens to cause further ructions between Washington and its allies, after Goldberg revealed disparaging comments by Vance and Hegseth about “pathetic” European nations during their chat.The Trump administration has stepped up attacks on the Huthi rebels in response to constant attempts to sink and disrupt shipping through the strategic Red Sea.The Huthi rebels, who have controlled much of Yemen for more than a decade, are part of the “axis of resistance” of pro-Iran groups staunchly opposed to Israel and the US. 

President Donald Trump’s two months back in the White House have been marked by soaring friction between Washington and its European allies.Here’s a look at the key issues where the United States has shifted gears, including tariffs, support for Ukraine and urging Europe to take greater control of its own defense.- ‘Pathetic’ freeloaders -A stunning security breach that saw a journalist inadvertently added to a chat group of top Trump officials discussing plans to attack Huthi rebels in Yemen revealed highly critical comments about European allies. In the chat, a user identified as US Vice President JD Vance expressed doubts about conducting military strikes on the rebels, arguing that Europe was more impacted than the US by the group’s attacks on Red Sea shipping. “I just hate bailing Europe out again,” Vance wrote in the group.A user identified as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth replies: “I fully share your loathing of European freeloading. It’s PATHETIC.”Trump echoed Hegseth’s comments Tuesday. “Yeah, I think they’ve been freeloading,” he told reporters. “The European Union’s been absolutely terrible to us on trade.”- Hostile speech -Vance also shocked Europe when he used a February speech at a security forum in Munich to attack EU policies on immigration and free speech.The vice president charged that “across Europe, free speech, I fear, is in retreat,” and that censorship was a bigger threat than Russian or Chinese military aggression. “No voter on this continent went to the ballot box to open the floodgates to millions of unvetted immigrants,” he added, defending populist right-wing parties.- ‘Screw’ the US -Trump said last month that the EU was formed to “screw” the United States, laying bare his hostility to the longtime US partner as he detailed new tariffs.”But now I’m president,” he said.Trump’s 25-percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports took effect on March 12. EU countermeasures are set to begin in April.- ‘Have to have’ Greenland -Trump has insisted he wants the United States to take over Greenland, a Danish territory, for national security purposes and has refused to rule out the use of force to achieve this.”We need Greenland for international safety and security. We need it. We have to have it,” Trump told podcaster Vince Coglianese Wednesday. “I hate to put it that way, but we’re going to have to have it.”The vast territory is located strategically in the Arctic and is rich in mineral resources.Vance has insisted the president is not afraid of ruffling feathers on the issue, citing national security.”He doesn’t care about what the Europeans scream at us,” Vance told Fox News last month.- Shifting power with Putin -Perhaps the most shocking shift has been on Russia and Ukraine — best epitomized by a meeting between Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymr Zelensky at the White House on February 28 in which the US President and Vice President JD Vance berated their wartime ally in front of the world’s media.Trump has appeared to lean towards Russian President Vladimir Putin, undermining Zelensky’s legitimacy and suggesting that Ukraine was responsible for the Russian invasion, rather than Moscow.In February he blindsided Kyiv and European allies by agreeing to launch peace talks after a phone call with Putin.European powers insisted that they and Kyiv must have a seat at the table of any future negotiations — but days later, top US officials met Russian negotiators in Saudi Arabia to lay the ground for talks.Europe was not represented, nor was it in the latest round of Saudi discussions Sunday and Monday.And in a seismic shift at the United Nations, Washington sided with Moscow in two votes last month, avoiding condemnation of Putin’s war in Ukraine.When Britain and France said they would be willing to deploy ground troops in Ukraine, Vance responded by mocking the prospect of sending “20,000 troops from some random country that has not fought a war in 30 or 40 years.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday announced support for “all-in-Canada” auto manufacturing, escalating trade protection in response to US President Donald Trump’s threat to “shut down” the northern country’s auto industry.Carney detailed a CAN$2 billion ($1.4 billion) fund while campaigning ahead of Canada’s April 28 election in Windsor, with the US city of Detroit visible across the river behind him. The highly-integrated North American auto industry, and specifically the free-flow of parts between Detroit and Michigan during the manufacturing process, has been a focal point in Trump’s trade war. Gesturing to the suspension bridge that connects the cities, Carney noted that auto parts could cross the border “six times before assembly,” but warned Canada needed to prepare for a “new world.””It’s not about waiting for the Americans to become more reasonable. It is about acting now,” Carney said. “What we need to do is build more of those autos, and more of each auto, right here in Canada,” Carney said.His proposed fund will support efforts to build more car parts in Canada while limiting the number of parts that cross the border during production, a statement from Carney’s Liberal Party said. Trump has threatened, imposed and withdrawn various tariffs on Canada’s auto industry and his full plans for the sector remain unclear. New levies targeting auto parts from Canada could be part of his administration’s highly-anticipated April 2 announcement on global reciprocal tariffs. The president has charged that Canada “stole” the US auto industry and said auto-makers that want to avoid tariffs should make cars in the United States. Industry experts argue North America’s integrated manufacturing process, which includes Mexico, has developed to maximize efficiency. Carney, a former central banker, replaced Justin Trudeau as prime minister on March 14 and on Sunday triggered snap elections. At the start of the year, the Liberal Party appeared headed towards a crushing electoral defeat with the Conservatives poised to retake power after a decade in opposition. But Trump’s trade war, his repeated threats to make Canada the 51st US state, and Trudeau’s departure have upended Canadian politics. Just over a month before the vote, pollsters are currently projecting a Liberal majority, a stunning reversal driven in part by a perception among some voters that Carney is the best leader to confront Trump. 

US President Donald Trump ramped up his claims to Greenland on Wednesday, saying ahead of a visit by Vice President JD Vance that the United States needed to take control of the Danish island for “international security.”Since coming to power in January, Trump has repeatedly insisted that he wants the self-governed territory to be a US possession, refusing to rule out the use of force to achieve his goal.”We need Greenland for international safety and security. We need it. We have to have it,” Trump told podcaster Vince Coglianese. “I hate to put it that way, but we’re going to have to have it.”Greenland, which is seeking independence from Denmark, holds massive untapped mineral and oil reserves, though oil and uranium exploration are banned.It is also strategically located between North America and Europe at a time of rising US, Chinese and Russian interest in the Arctic, where sea lanes have opened up because of climate change.The US president’s latest strident comments come as Vice President Vance is due to accompany his wife Usha on a visit to the US-run Pituffik Space Base in Greenland on Friday.Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland’s outgoing Prime Minister Mute Egede had earlier harshly criticized plans by a US delegation to visit the Arctic island uninvited for what was initially a much broader visit.Egede had qualified the initial plans as “foreign interference,” noting that the outgoing government had not “sent out any invitations for visits, private or official.”On Wednesday, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen welcomed the decision to limit the visit to the US space base.”I think it’s very positive that the Americans have canceled their visit among Greenlandic society. They will only visit their own base, Pituffik, and we have nothing against that,” he told public broadcaster DR.- ‘Respect this process’ -Greenlandic officials have repeatedly said the territory does not want to be either Danish or American, but is “open for business” with everyone. According to opinion polls, most Greenlanders support independence from Denmark but not annexation by Washington.Following March 11 elections, Greenland has only a transitional government, with parties still in negotiations to form a new coalition government.Egede has called for “all countries to respect this process.”Marc Jacobsen, a senior lecturer at the Royal Danish Defense College, called the decision to limit the US visit “a de-escalation,” a term also used by Foreign Minister Lokke.”The fact that the Greenlandic and Danish authorities are telling you that you’re not welcome is significant,” he told AFP. “The risk of negative coverage in the media and social networks may have weighed even more,” he added, noting that a demonstration was announced in Sisimiut, following an initial anti-US demonstration in the capital Nuuk on March 15.