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President Donald Trump lambasted previous US leaders and policies in a campaign-style speech Saturday to graduating Army officers, underscoring his determination to remold the apolitical military to his right-wing ideology.The address to newly minted junior officers at the famed West Point academy in New York featured the annual event’s traditional shout-outs to top students, jokes, and praise for the cadets’ sporting achievements.However, the 78-year-old Republican, who has used the first four months of his second term to attack critics and concentrate power in the White House, quickly turned to edgier topics.The blistering rhetoric got only muted applause from the rows of grey-uniformed cadets.Justifying his isolationist policies and mistrust of historic US alliances, Trump said that for at least two decades, US leaders have “dragged our military into missions…, wasting our time, money and souls.”Troops were “led by leaders who didn’t have a clue in distant lands.”Trump also focused on his decision to rid the military of so-called DEI policies, which are meant to encourage participation by racial and sexual minorities in the ranks, including women.The drive to rid the armed forces of what Trump derides as “woke” initiatives has also seen the removal from military academy bookshelves of scores of books that cover the painful US history of racism.Trump told graduating cadets that his predecessors had been “abusing our soldiers with absurd ideological experiments.””They subjected the armed forces to all manner of social projects and political causes while leaving our borders undefended,” he said.”All of that’s ended. You know that,” Trump said. “They’re not even allowed to think about it anymore.””The job of the US armed forces is not to host drag shows,” he said. “The military’s job is to dominate any foe, to annihilate any threat to America, anywhere.”- Criticism of US allies -Trump has successfully channeled disillusionment among Americans after the long wars in Afghanistan and Iraq triggered by the September 11, 2001, attacks. He vowed at West Point that the United States will not attempt to “spread democracy… at the point of a gun.”But his post-9/11-era reset also includes unprecedented scorn for US allies in Europe and Asia, which he again said on Saturday had been cheating the United States.”They don’t rip us off anymore,” he boasted.Adding to the partisan tone of the speech, Trump wore one of his red election campaign hats throughout and talked up his November victory as a “great mandate” which “gives us the right to do what we want to do.”Army officers are not allowed to engage in politics and even when Trump paused for applause, the clapping from the cadets was often sporadic. Those invited to speak briefly at Trump’s podium kept their messages strictly personal — not so much as referring to the president.However, the refashioning of the Pentagon, led by Trump’s ultra-loyal defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has caused open unease in some quarters.Graham Parsons, a professor of philosophy at West Point, resigned this month, saying that the academy had “abandoned its core principles” to comply with White House ideological demands and that he was “ashamed.”New teaching guidelines on shunning discussion of racism or sexism, while insisting on promoting the idea of America as a constant force for good, “were brazen demands to indoctrinate, not educate,” Parsons wrote in The New York Times.

The six people onboard a small plane that crashlanded on a California neighborhood amid dense fog were all killed, according to investigating authorities.The Cessna 550 Citation, which federal records show belonged to music agent Dave Shapiro, plummeted into a residential area of San Diego at 3:47 am (1047 GMT) on Thursday, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).It was not immediately clear what caused the Cessna to come plunging into the Murphy Canyon neighborhood, about two miles (3.2 kilometres) from the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport where the aircraft was headed.In an audio recording posted to air traffic website liveatc.net, the pilot can be heard asking about weather conditions prior to descent, while indicating that visibility was down to a minimum.”Doesn’t sound great, but we’ll give it a go,” the pilot said.As the plane came down, it clipped a power line and the impact of the crash set several nearby houses and vehicles alight, jolting families awake before dawn.”The pilot and passengers were fatally injured,” NTSB investigator Dan Baker told a press conference on Friday. He added that no one on the ground had been seriously hurt.While Baker did not specify the number of fatalities, the US Federal Aviation Administration previously said the private plane had six people onboard.The San Diego County medical examiner’s office named three of the victims as Shapiro, 42, Emma Huke, 25, and Celina Kenyon, 36.Music veteran Shapiro was a co-founder of Sound Talent Group, which counts artists Hanson, Sum 41, Modern Baseball and Vanessa Carlton on its roster. The company told US media that two other members of its staff, booking assistants Huke and Kendall Fortner, were also killed in the crash.”We are devastated by the loss of our co-founder, colleagues and friends. Our hearts go out to their families and to everyone impacted,” Sound Talent Group said in a statement.NBC7 identified the other victims as software engineer Dominic Damian and Daniel Williams, a former drummer for metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada.”No words. We owe you everything. Love you forever,” the band wrote in a tribute to Williams on Instagram.Kenyon was a professional photographer and mother, according to her social media. Her father, Bryan Charles Feldman, told NBC7 she had chosen to fly home early with friends after a photo shoot rather than take a commercial plane so she could take her daughter to school the next day. At least 10 homes in San Diego’s Murphy Canyon neighborhood were hit by debris, while the street was littered with charred remnants, scattered fiberglass and jet fuel.Eight people were treated for minor injuries, according to responding police and firefighters.The NTSB said the pilot had not reported any problems to air traffic control or declared an emergency before trying to land.The regional Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport was experiencing several glitches at the time, with its runway approach lights and an automated weather reporting system not operational, according to the NTSB’s Baker.The plane was not equipped with a flight data recorder.”We are trying to determine at this time if the airplane was equipped with a cockpit voice recorder,” Baker said.The NTSB said its preliminary investigation would take several weeks to complete.

The six people onboard a small plane that crashlanded in a California neighborhood amid dense fog were all killed, according to investigating authorities.The Cessna 550 Citation, which federal records show belonged to music agent Dave Shapiro, struck a power line before plummeting into a residential area of San Diego at 3:47 am (1047 GMT) on Thursday, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).”The pilot and passengers were fatally injured,” NTSB investigator Dan Baker told a press conference on Friday. He added that no one on the ground had been seriously hurt.While Baker did not specify the number of fatalities, the US Federal Aviation Administration previously said the private plane had six people onboard.The San Diego County medical examiner’s office named three of the victims as Shapiro, 42, Emma Huke, 25, and Celina Kenyon, 36.Music veteran Shapiro was a co-founder of Sound Talent Group, which has represented artists including Sum 41 and Vanessa Carlton. The company told US media that two other members of its staff, booking assistants Huke and Kendall Fortner, were also killed in the crash.”We are devastated by the loss of our co-founder, colleagues and friends. Our hearts go out to their families and to everyone impacted,” Sound Talent Group said in a statement.Kenyon was a professional photographer and mother, according to her social media. Her father, Bryan Charles Feldman, told NBC7 she had chosen to fly home early with friends after a photo shoot rather than take a commercial plane so she could take her daughter to school the next day. NBC7 identified the other victims as software engineer Dominic Damian and Daniel Williams, a former drummer for metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada.”No words. We owe you everything. Love you forever,” the band wrote in a tribute to Williams on Instagram.In San Diego’s Murphy Canyon neighborhood, at least 10 homes were hit by debris, while the site of the fiery crash was littered with charred remnants of cars and scattered fiberglass.It was not immediately clear what caused the Cessna to come plunging into the bloc, setting several houses alight. The NTSB said the pilot had not reported any problems to air traffic control or declared an emergency.Runway approach lights and an automated weather reporting system were not operational at the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport at the time, according to the NTSB’s Baker.”We are trying to determine at this time if the airplane was equipped with a cockpit voice recorder,” Baker said.The NTSB said its preliminary investigation would take several weeks to complete.

Police beefed up security at schools and religious buildings across Washington Friday as the US capital reeled from the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum.The 31-year-old Chicago man accused of Wednesday’s attack shouted “Free Palestine” as he was taken away by police — exacerbating fears over rising anti-Semitism since Israel’s invasion of Gaza following the unprecedented October 2023 Hamas attack.”Around DC, you will see an increased presence of law enforcement officers around the community, you will find us around our faith-based organizations,” Metropolitan Police (MPD) Chief Pamela Smith told reporters.”You will see an increased presence around our schools and places like the DC Jewish Community Center. We stand shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish community.”Authorities in Washington said they were investigating the shooting “as an act of terrorism and as a hate crime” ahead of a preliminary court hearing set for alleged killer Elias Rodriguez on June 18.President Donald Trump — who spoke with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — posted on social media that the attack was clearly anti-Semitic.The shooting, just a mile (1.6 kilometers) from the White House, triggered international outrage as Israel blamed European criticism of its Gaza offensive, which came in response to the Hamas attack.The victims of Wednesday’s attack, Israeli citizen Yaron Lischinsky and American Sarah Lynn Milgrim, had been planning to marry.- ‘Crazy’ -Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser gathered her interfaith council, local Jewish leaders, city councillors and law enforcement officials on Thursday to coordinate the community response.”We have a long history, and a lot of practice in our city, of working with Jewish organizations around safety and around protection,” she told a news conference.Aaron Hiller, head of the board of the Hill Havurah synagogue, who was organizing a vigil for the victims in Washington late Friday, said the attack was “unfortunately … not unexpected.””Both acts of anti-Semitism and acts of violence are all too common,” Hiller said, though insisting the community was “very safe.””I walk to work and from work very late at night (and) my kids roam the neighborhood freely,” he said.But “particularly since the events of October 7th, we are taking steps to enhance our security here and elsewhere.”Daniel Ben Chitrit, who was at the vigil, said he was deeply shaken by Wednesday’s killings, adding that he was supposed to have been at the Jewish Museum that evening.”I didn’t know the victims, but I’ve met the victims at previous events,” he said.He insisted there had been no way for the shooter to know the couple worked at the Israeli embassy.”All he knew is that they were coming from the Jewish event,” he said.

As the Memorial Day holiday weekend gets underway, US voyagers are girding for a bumpy ride as heavy summer travel volumes test the nation’s overworked air traffic system.Travelers at Newark Liberty International Airport said this week they were resigned to delays but not worried about safety.”It’s more of a concern coming back,” Benjamin Schmutzer, 32, said Wednesday night at Newark before his departure to Portugal. “Hopefully the government has sorted it out.”One of three major airports serving the busy New York City region, Newark has been under a cloud since an April 28 equipment outage resulted in air traffic controllers losing radar and communications with planes for 90 seconds.The incident, which spurred scrutiny in Congress and a comic skit on Saturday Night Live, was a factor in some Newark-assigned Air Traffic Control (ATC) staff taking leave “to recover from the stress of multiple recent outages,” according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).While the bulk of the recent incidents have been at Newark, part of Denver’s air traffic system also lost communications for 90 seconds on May 12. The US air safety regulator has also faced questions after a fatal January crash at Washington National Airport, the first major US commercial crash since 2009.”There will be delays this summer,” predicted aviation consultant Jeff Guzzetti, the FAA’s former director of accident investigations.Guzzetti praised Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s ATC modernization drive as long overdue. But he pointed to FAA “turmoil” from myriad departures of senior officials following the Trump administration’s push to downsize the government.Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, said summer travel will go more smoothly than feared if there are no major outages.While the ATC system needs to be upgraded, Daniels does not believe the acute problems at Newark are pervasive throughout the system nationally. But the recent incidents are a “warning sign” about the need to invest in modernizing the system. He also backs Duffy’s commitment to hiring more air traffic controllers, saying inadequate staffing means six-day work weeks and long hours for ATC workers.”It is literally the burden of the system on the back of the American worker,” said Daniels.- Slowing down operations -Newark’s problems stem from the FAA’s decision in 2024 to move some Newark ATC staff to Philadelphia, relocating them from Long Island, New York, where the FAA currently manages some ATC operations for several sites, including both of the other two major New York airports.Newark operations have improved in recent weeks since the FAA replaced some telecommunications lines to the Philadelphia site, US transportation officials say. The agency this week also announced it was lowering the caps on total Newark flights.The New Jersey airport featured prominently at congressional hearings earlier this month, during which FAA officials pointed to airplane systems that help guarantee distance between planes and noted that pilots are trained in case air traffic systems fail.As a result of these redundancies, there was no “heightened significant danger to the flying public” at Newark, said Frank McIntosh, deputy chief operating officer of the Air Traffic Organization.McIntosh acknowledged that staffing in Philadelphia has had problems, with the number of working air traffic controllers dropping as low as three at a certain point, instead of the usual seven. But safety was not compromised because the FAA curtailed flight service, he said.”When we have a staffing shortage … we put in traffic management initiatives to slow the aircraft down,” McIntosh said.However, such moves wreak havoc on the schedules of travelers.On the worst travel days, there have been more than 230 flight cancellations and 470 flight delays at the New Jersey airport, Port Authority officials said.Still, officials from United Airlines, Newark’s biggest airline operator, said Friday they were optimistic of a smooth travel season this summer, citing the FAA flight limits as well as improved capacity once a runway construction project ends in mid-June.But Ramesh Jaganathan, 47, does not expect a speedy turnaround.”It’s a horrible experience,” Jaganathan said Wednesday night after his Orlando flight to Newark landed two hours late. “We would love to reach our homes as soon as possible. But we’ve got to get used to it for the summer.”

A judge suspended Friday the Trump administration’s move to block Harvard from enrolling and hosting foreign students after the prestigious university sued, calling the action unconstitutional.On Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revoked Harvard University’s ability to enroll foreign nationals, throwing the future of thousands of students and the lucrative income stream they provide into doubt.But Harvard sued and US district judge Allison Burroughs ordered that “The Trump administration is hereby enjoined from implementing… the revocation of Plaintiff’s SEVP (Student and Exchange Visitor Program) certification.”There will be an injunction hearing on May 29, a court filing showed.President Donald Trump is furious at Harvard — which has produced 162 Nobel prize winners — for rejecting Washington’s oversight on admissions and hiring amid his claims the school is a hotbed of anti-Semitism and “woke” liberal ideology.His administration has threatened to put $9 billion of government funding to Harvard under review, then went on to freeze a first tranche of $2.2 billion of grants and $60 million of official contracts. It has also targeted a Harvard Medical School researcher for deportation.”It is the latest act by the government in clear retaliation for Harvard exercising its First Amendment rights to reject the government’s demands to control Harvard’s governance, curriculum, and the ‘ideology’ of its faculty and students,” said the lawsuit filed in Massachusetts federal court.The lawsuit called for a judge to “stop the government’s arbitrary, capricious, unlawful, and unconstitutional action.”The loss of foreign nationals — more than a quarter of its student body — could prove costly to Harvard, which charges tens of thousands of dollars a year in tuition.White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller claimed that, in granting a temporary pause, “a communist judge has created a constitutional right for foreign nationals… to be admitted to American universities funded by American tax dollars.”- ‘Unlawful and unwarranted’ -Harvard President Alan Garber said in a statement Friday ahead of Burroughs’s order that “we condemn this unlawful and unwarranted action.”It imperils the futures of thousands of students and scholars across Harvard and serves as a warning to countless others at colleges and universities throughout the country who have come to America to pursue their education and fulfill their dreams,” he said. Noem had said Thursday that “this administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, anti-Semitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus.”Chinese students make up more than a fifth of Harvard’s international enrollment, according to university figures, and Beijing said the decision will “only harm the image and international standing of the United States.” “The Chinese side has consistently opposed the politicization of educational cooperation,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.Harvard has already sued the US government over a separate raft of punitive measures.Karl Molden, a student at Harvard from Austria, said he had applied to transfer to Oxford in Britain because he feared such measures.”It’s scary and it’s saddening,” the 21-year-old government and classics student told AFP Thursday, calling his admission to Harvard the “greatest privilege” of his life.Leaders of the Harvard chapter of the American Association of University Professors called Trump’s action “the latest in a string of nakedly authoritarian and retaliatory moves against America’s oldest institution of higher education.”

The Justice Department said Friday it reached a preliminary agreement with Boeing to settle a long-running criminal probe into deadly 737 MAX crashes, drawing condemnation from some crash victim families. Under an “agreement in principle,” Boeing will pay $1.1 billion and the Department of Justice (DOJ) would dismiss a criminal charge against Boeing over its conduct in the certification of the MAX, DOJ said in a federal filing.A judge must approve the accord, which would scuttle a criminal trial scheduled for June in Fort Worth, Texas.The agreement would resolve the case without requiring Boeing to plead guilty to fraud in the certification of the MAX, which was involved in two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed 346 lives.Family members of some MAX victims slammed the proposed settlement as a giveaway to Boeing.”The message sent by this action to companies around the country is, don’t worry about making your products safe for your customers,” said Javier de Luis in a statement released by attorneys for plaintiffs suing Boeing.”This kind of non-prosecution deal is unprecedented and obviously wrong for the deadliest corporate crime in US history,” said Paul Cassell, an attorney representing relatives of victims. “My families will object and hope to convince the court to reject it.”But the DOJ, in its brief, cited other family members who expressed a desire for closure, quoting one who said “the grief resurfaces every time this case is discussed in court or other forums.” Family members of more than 110 crash victims told the government “they either support the Agreement specifically, support the Department’s efforts to resolve the case pre-trial more generally or do not oppose the agreement,” the filing said.The DOJ filing called the accord “a fair and just resolution that serves the public interest.” “The Agreement guarantees further accountability and substantial benefits from Boeing immediately, while avoiding the uncertainty and litigation risk presented by proceeding to trial,” it said.Boeing declined to comment when contacted by AFP.- ‘Slap on the wrist’ -Friday’s proposed agreement marks the latest development in a marathon case that came in the wake of the two crashes that tarnished Boeing’s reputation and contributed to leadership shakeups at the aviation giant.The case dates to a January 2021 DOJ agreement with Boeing that settled charges that the company knowingly defrauded the Federal Aviation Administration during the MAX certification.The 2021 accord included a three-year probation period. But in May 2024, the DOJ determined that Boeing had violated the 2021 accord following a number of subsequent safety lapses.Boeing agreed in July 2024 to plead guilty to “conspiracy to defraud the United States.” But in December, federal judge Reed O’Connor rejected a settlement codifying the guilty plea, setting the stage for the incoming Trump administration to decide the next steps.Under Friday’s proposed accord, Boeing “will admit to conspiracy to obstruct and impede the lawful operation of the Federal Aviation Administration Aircraft Evaluation Group.”But this acknowledgment “doesn’t carry any criminal penalties,” said Carl Tobias, a professor at the University of Richmond School of Law.”You don’t have that kind of stigma or retribution or whatever it is that we think of as deterring that behavior,” Tobias said. “It’s a slap on the wrist.”Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat who held hearings into Boeing’s problems in 2024, condemned the agreement as an “outrageous injustice” to victims and the public. “After repeatedly rebuffing responsibility and lying, Boeing will now permanently escape accountability,” Blumenthal said. “Victims, families, and the flying public deserve better. They deserve justice, not this sham.”

US President Donald Trump on Friday threw his support behind a new “partnership” between US Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel, sending the American firm’s share price skyrocketing on hopes of an end to the long-running saga over foreign ownership of a key national asset.  While the details of the deal remained unclear, the Pennsylvania-headquartered firm’s share price popped after Trump took to Truth Social to hail the new arrangement, closing up more than 21 percent and then rising further in after-hours trading.”US Steel will REMAIN in America, and keep its Headquarters in the Great City of Pittsburgh,” the US president said in his social media post. He added that the new “planned partnership” between America’s US Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel would create at least 70,000 jobs and add $14 billion to the US economy. Trump’s remarks are the latest in a long saga which began in December 2023, when US Steel and Nippon Steel announced plans for a $14.9 billion merger. That deal was bitterly opposed by unions in part because it would have transfered ownership of the critical asset to a foreign company. – ‘Massive investment’ -In a statement, Nippon Steel said it “applauds” the bold action taken by Trump, adding it shared the administration’s “commitment to protecting American workers, the American steel industry, and America’s national security.”US Steel praised Trump’s “bold” leadership on the deal, noting that it would “remain American” and expand in size due to the “massive investment” that Nippon would make over the next four years as part of the deal.Neither the White House nor the two companies, have so far published the details of the new partnership.  The United Steelworkers’ union (USW), which represents US Steel employees and has long opposed the deal, said on Friday that it could not “speculate” on the impact of Trump’s announcement without more information about the deal. “Our concern remains that Nippon, a foreign corporation with a long and proven track record of violating our trade laws, will further erode domestic steelmaking capacity and jeopardize thousands of good, union jobs,” USW International President David McCall said in a statement shared with AFP. Nippon’s acquisition of US Steel was originally meant to close by the end of 2024’s third financial quarter, but was then held up by former president Joe Biden, who blocked it in his last weeks in office on national security grounds.The two firms then filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration’s “illegal interference” in the transaction.Trump previously opposed Nippon Steel’s takeover plan, calling for US Steel to remain domestically owned. But he has since softened his tone and has suggested he is open to some form of investment from Nippon.The US president recently ordered his own review of the existing deal, directing the government’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to look into the proposed acquisition.CFIUS, tasked with analyzing the national security implications of foreign takeovers of US companies, was given 45 days to submit its recommendations to Trump.

US President Donald Trump rekindled his trade war with the European Union on Friday by threatening 50 percent tariffs, as Brussels reacted with a call for “respect.”Trump also unleashed a broadside against smartphone makers including US tech giant Apple, threatening them with new duties of 25 percent if they do not move production to the United States.Stock markets fell as the Republican’s comments fueled fears of global economic disruption, after a relative lull in recent days after Trump reached deals with China and Britain.Trump first raised the issue of EU tariffs in an early morning post on his Truth Social network. “Our discussions with them are going nowhere!” Trump said. “Therefore, I am recommending a straight 50 percent Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025.”He doubled down later in the day, telling reporters in the Oval Office that there was nothing the 27-nation bloc could do to change his mind.”I’m not looking for a deal. I mean, we’ve set the deal. It’s at 50 percent,” Trump said. “They haven’t treated our country properly. They banded together to take advantage of us.”Billionaire property tycoon Trump, 78, also denied that his tariffs would hurt American businesses.”They’re not hurting, they’re helping,” he said.Trump’s new tariffs would, if imposed, dramatically raise Washington’s current baseline levy of 10 percent, and fuel simmering tensions between the world’s biggest economy and its largest trading bloc.The EU’s trade chief said the bloc would work for a trade deal with Washington based on “respect” not “threats.””The EU’s fully engaged, committed to securing a deal that works for both,” trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic posted on X, after a previously planned call with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.In a separate message posted Friday that also unnerved markets, Trump blasted Apple boss Tim Cook for failing to move iPhone production to the United States despite repeated requests.Trump said he had “long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else.” “If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S.”Trump later stepped up his threats, saying he would hit all smartphones not made in the country.”It would be also Samsung and anybody that makes that product, otherwise it wouldn’t be fair,” Trump told reporters, adding that the new tariffs would come into effect from the end of June.- Market worries -Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on most of the world on what he called “Liberation Day” on April 2, with a baseline 10 percent plus steeper duties including a 20 percent levy on the EU.Markets were thrown into turmoil but calmed after he paused the bigger tariffs for 90 days.Trump has since claimed some early successes in deals struck with Britain and with China, the world’s second biggest economy.But talks with the EU have failed to make much progress, with Brussels recently threatening to hit US goods worth nearly 100 billion euros ($113 billion) with tariffs if it does not lower the duties on European goods.US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Bloomberg Television on Friday the lower 10 percent tariff rate was “contingent on countries or trading blocs coming and negotiating in good faith.”Wall Street’s main indexes were all down around one percent two hours into trading, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq at one stage losing 1.5 percent before rallying while Apple shares sank 2.5 percent.Paris and Frankfurt ended with losses of around 1.5 percent, while London’s FTSE 100, which initially rose, also ended in the red.”The administration had kind of hinted that they were considering imposing reciprocal tariffs on countries that weren’t negotiating in good faith,” Barclays senior US economist Jonathan Millar told AFP. 

SpaceX said Friday it will make another launch attempt next week of the massive Starship rocket — key to CEO Elon Musk’s long-term vision of colonizing Mars — after two consecutive in-flight explosions earlier this year.”The ninth flight test of Starship is preparing to launch as soon as Tuesday, May 27,” the company said on its website, adding the launch window would open at 6:30 pm (2330 GMT) at its base in Texas.Two previous test flights of the world’s largest and most powerful rocket ended in setbacks, with high-altitude explosions and showers of debris falling over the Caribbean.Both times, the upper stage of the rocket was lost. But the Super Heavy Booster was caught with the launch tower’s mechanical “chopstick” arms — an impressive feat of engineering.To date, Starship has completed eight integrated test flights atop the Super Heavy booster, with four successes and four failures ending in explosions.The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered inquiries and grounded all SpaceX flights, but on Thursday authorized the resumption of the company’s flight activities, provided that modifications were made to the rocket.For this new flight, SpaceX will reuse one of the recovered Super Heavy boosters for the first time.However, the vehicle will not return to Starbase for a new catch. Instead, it will be used to conduct “several flight experiments to gather real-world performance data” before making a “hard splashdown” in the Gulf of Mexico, which President Donald Trump renamed the Gulf of America upon taking office.Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall — about 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty — Starship is designed to eventually be fully reusable.Musk’s company is betting on the launch of numerous Starship prototypes in order to quickly correct problems — a successful strategy, but one that has its critics.In 2023, several environmental groups sued the FAA, accusing them of failing to completely assess the environmental impact of these test flights.Despite the criticism, the FAA in early May authorized the increase of the number of annual Starship rocket launches from five to 25 at SpaceX’s Texas base.