Reuters World News - Ukraine peace delay, TikTok alternative, SKorea arrest and wildfire aid fight

Episode Date: January 15, 2025

Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is arrested and questioned by authorities over his failed attempt to impose martial law. Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, endured a tough confirmation hearing grilling from Democrats over his inexperience, alleged drinking and past opposition to women in combat. Top Republicans in Congress eye conditions on disaster aid to Los Angeles communities devastated by wildfires after Trump claims that officials mishandled the situation. And over half a million TikTok 'refugees' flock to RedNote, another Chinese social media app. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter here. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast here. Find the Recommended Read here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, South Korea's impeached president is arrested. Trump's advisors concede that a Ukraine peace deal could be months away. While aid for Los Angeles wildfire recovery becomes a political fight in the House. Plus, self-proclaimed TikTok refugees are fleeing to another Chinese app as a U.S. ban approaches. It's Wednesday, January 15th. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front line. in 10 minutes every weekday. I'm Tara Oaks in London. And I'm Christopher Walgesper in Chicago. Advisors to President-elect Donald Trump now concede that the Ukraine war will take months or even

longer to resolve in a sharp reality check on his biggest foreign policy promise. Two Trump associates, who've discussed a war in Ukraine with the President-elect, described the day one promises as a combination of campaign bluster and a lack of appreciation of how long it will take to tackle the intractable conflict with the new administration. Over the past several weeks, our intensive efforts have brought us to the brink of full and final agreement. U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on a possible Gaza ceasefire on hostage release deal. Close, but not over the finish line yet. U.S. and Egyptian negotiators say their focus is on the coming hours and hammering out the final details after marathon talks in

in Qatar. In South Africa, authorities have pulled at least 60 bodies from the shaft of a shuttered gold mine. More than 100 survivors have been forced out and arrested, and an unknown number of men are still feared trapped more than a mile underground, following a crackdown on illegal mining. President Joe Biden will relax sanctions targeting longtime foe Cuba days before Donald Trump takes office. Biden is reversing several hardline restrictions put in place by Trump and expects the broad set of steps to lead to the release of political prisoners in Havana. The Securities and Exchange Commission is suing Elon Musk for failing to properly disclose his ownership of X. Musk has suggested the disclosure delay was a mistake. And Kate, Britain's Princess of Wales, says she is relieved

to be in remission following her cancer treatment. Her comment. Her comment, coming after a visit for London Hospital where she underwent months of medical care. Investors are treading water as they wait for a raft of numbers due out today, including US consumer price data that could potentially shift the monetary policy outlook, plus Q4 results from some of the top banks.

Investors are eyeing City and JPMorgan earnings to see if they will deliver on sky-high expectations. And you can see the results and the market reaction on Reuters.com and the Reuters app. The U.S. Supreme Court could announce as soon as today how it might rule on the U.S. TikTok ban. TikTok users say they're bracing for the worst and looking for alternatives.

In fact, thousands of them have joined another Chinese app called Red Note. Users like Crystal from Massachusetts, who recently posted this on Red Note. If we do anything wrong, just let us know. Because we're used to making videos where we dance and do stupid stuff. Our tech reporter, Crystal Who in New York, has been looking into Red Note and other apps that have seen a boost from the impending TikTok ban. Red Note has a pretty vibrant community. And in the past two days, I think too much surprise to Retnow the company itself, what we heard is over 700,000 new users joined a platform. And a lot of them call them the TikTok refugees.

And it was a very interesting phenomenon to see American users joining into another Chinese app to avoid a ban on the Chinese app TikTok. And now we're seeing media reports that a possible option for keeping TikTok alive in the U.S. would be a purchase potentially by Elon Musk. What do we know about that prospect? To be fair, Trump and Elon Musk's team haven't set a word on this. And when we reached out to TikTok for comment, they told us they cannot be. commenting on pure fiction and the Chinese government did not reply for any request for comments.

What has been reported is that is internal deliberations between the Chinese government. So if indeed, there isn't loosening up of that line that Chinese government is holding that they're open for a conversation and effectively put TikTok

in a for sale sign as this report's asserted there will be tons of interest, we believe, from the U.S. investors and a business side. TikTok plans to keep paying its U.S. employees pass the January 19th deadline,

even if a Supreme Court does not overturn the law that would force its sale or ban. That's according to an internal memo reviewed by Reuters. Impeached South Korean president Yun Suk Yol has been arrested and questioned by authorities over his failed attempt to impose martial law in December. Yun says he's only cooperating with what he calls an illegal probe to avoid unsavory bloodshed.

Jumann Park is on the ground and centers this from South Korea's Corruption Investigation Office. The arrest today was, you know, live broadcast from, like, before done, and hundreds of thousands of people were watching live fees on YouTube. Finally, Yun, with a prosecutor, got in his car and departed his car,

and departed his residence and came to this corruption investigation office where intense questioning is expected. As soon as there was news that Yuen might be shortly arrested, the supporters were very upset. They teared up and some people are so upset and angry and they slapped the police with their Korean and American flag polls. It's a very classic to see Yun supporters holding South Korean and American flag together because they are huge fans of Trump, U.S. President-elect,

and they hope that Trump is going to save Yun or support Yun. It's a busy week for President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet appointees. His pick to lead the Pentagon came under fierce grilling during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday. One of your colleagues said that you got drunk at an event at a bar and chanted kill all Muslims. Democrats like Senator Tim Cain voiced concern about Pete Hegzert's inexperience and alleged drunkenness. The former Fox News host called those allegations a coordinated smear campaign. And why do they want to destroy me? Because I'm a change agent and a threat to them, because Donald Trump was willing to choose me to empower me.

He has vowed to abstain from alcohol, if confirmed. largely weathered the four-hour hearing without making any major gaff that would have alienated Republicans, and even one critical backing from Republican Senator Joni Ernst who holds sway in her party. All confirmation hearings

are set for today, including Attorney General, Secretary of State and Homeland Security Secretary. Meanwhile, over in the House, a fight over California wildfire disaster aid is breaking out. Republican Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Monday that there should be

conditions placed on aid, claiming that officials in the Democrat-led state mismanaged water resources and forests. House Democrats, like Representative Ted Liu, pushed back on Tuesday. When Mother Nature strikes, she doesn't go, hey, are you a Democrat or Republican? Because if you're a Democrat, I'm going to take your home and burn it. And if you're a Republican, I'm not. That's not what happened. Our reporter David Morgan is following the story in Washington. There are a couple of things that seem to be going on. One is that President Trump has voiced a partisan political message about California, but also there is a climate in Congress these days that frowns on spending of any kind. Hardline Republicans don't want to spend that

much money on things. So there are some elements to this that seem to delve into partisan politics. There are other elements that seem to be wholly focused on fiscal management. It's important to realize that FEMA for the moment says that it has enough money to deal with the need that it faces in the Los Angeles area. And it's also important to understand that if aid for California goes through the usual appropriations channels, it means that the Senate will need 60 votes to pass it. That means that Republicans will need help from Democrats, and therefore Democrats will be involved in negotiating with what the final package looks like. And for today's recommended read, a special report which digs into Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.

A Reuters analysis shows the company operates the dirtiest set of coal-fired power plants in the US, and that despite big investments in renewable energy, has resisted efforts by regulators to make its coal plants cleaner. A link to the special report is in the pod description. For more on any of the stories from today's show, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headlines show.