Elon Musk, President Donald Trump's billionaire ally, joked Thursday that he isn't a Russian asset because Russian President Vladimir Putin "can't afford me." The comments were made at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor,

In Moscow, there’s plenty of speculation that Musk could quickly become to Trump what Boris Berezovsky was to Putin. Two alpha males, many argue, cannot coexist in the same den.

Although Trump has so far devoted the most attention to media businesses, he has not ignored the broader economy. Every economic-policy decision he makes is a potential weapon to punish dissent or reward his friends, beginning with tariffs.

Russia earlier contradicted Mr Trump by saying it strongly opposed European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine, with foreign minister Sergei Lavrov claiming that it was a “deceit aimed at fuelling the conflict”.

Ukraine-Russia: President Trump said he hoped to soon secure a cease-fire agreement to halt the war in Ukraine, speaking at a joint White House news conference with Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain.