On Elon Musk's China trip, US presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has this to say

Elon Musk has received a grand welcome in China. It is the Tesla CEO’s first trip to the country in over three years. The industrialist has vowed to expand his business in China. But, not everyone is happy with the promises Elon Musk has been making. Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican leader and US presidential candidate has raised concerns over the billionaire’s trip to China.

In a video, Vivek Ramaswamy, who is of Indian origin, said that Elon Musk’s meeting with Qin Gang, China's foreign minister, was no small matter. The Republican candidate stated that the Tesla CEO’s statement referring to the United States and Communist China as "conjoined twins" was posted in the Asian country, but not in America.

“I’ve been one of the most vocal supporters of Elon Musk’s effort to transform Twitter, but it’s a real risk to the USwhen the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) turns our most prominent business leaders and celebrities - Tim Cook, Larry Fink, LeBron James, Elon Musk - into puppets to advance their agenda. That tilts the global scales of perception in China’s favour - and sadly, it’s working. The U.S. needs leaders who aren’t in China’s pocket, yet Biden is just another embodiment of that same problem,” Vivek Ramaswamy said.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

The visit comes as Tesla is facing stiff competition from Chinese-made electric vehicles. Elon Musk is the latest in a series of American industrialists who have visited China after the country reversed its zero-Covid policy. In March, Apple CEO Tim Cook undertook a trip to China.

Elon Musk has not yet made any public statements on Twitter about his trip to China. Interestingly, Twitter, which is owned by Musk, remains banned in the country.

Significance of Elon Musk’s China Trip

Elon Musk has often expressed his admiration for China. He had earlier suggested that Taiwan, a self-governed territory that China claims as part of its country, could be run as a “special administrative zone”. The billionaire’s Shanghai-based Gigafactory has also made headlines. Last year, the factory had contributed to about one-quarter of Shanghai's total automotive production value, as per a Reuters report. Local authorities have vowed to boost ties with Tesla, but some uncertainty regarding the Shanghai factory’s expansion plan remains. As per Reuters, there is no clarity on whether Tesla is facing any regulatory hurdles in its aim to broaden its production facilities.

Investors are also keen to see whether China will clear Tesla's advanced driver assistance features for release.