Filipinas expresó el lunes su alarma ante China por los recientes intercambios acalorados entre diplomáticos de ambos países en Manila, en el contexto de la prolongada disputa territorial en el mar del Sur de China. El Departamento de Asuntos Exteriores filipino informó que presentó firmes representaciones al embajador chino y a la embajada de China, transmitiendo “serias preocupaciones por la escalada de intercambios públicos”.

La cancillería filipina advirtió que el tono cada vez más contundente y de represalia con Beijing podría “desviar innecesariamente el espacio diplomático necesario para gestionar las tensiones en el ámbito marítimo”. A pesar de ello, manifestó su respaldo a los funcionarios, incluidos senadores, que han defendido los intereses nacionales en la zona en disputa.

El Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de China comunicó la semana pasada que convocó al embajador filipino Jaime Flor Cruz para protestar por declaraciones del portavoz de la guardia costera filipina, el comodoro Jay Tarriela, quien se ha mostrado especialmente crítico respecto a la postura china en la región.

China reclama casi toda la vía fluvial, una ruta esencial para el comercio global, aunque un fallo de arbitraje internacional de 2016, basado en la Convención de Naciones Unidas sobre el Derecho del Mar de 1982, invalidó las reclamaciones extensivas de Beijing. China no participó en ese arbitraje iniciado por Filipinas en 2013 y continúa rechazando su resultado.

A la disputa también se han sumado Vietnam, Malasia, Brunei y Taiwán, que mantienen reclamaciones sobre partes del mar del Sur de China. Las confrontaciones marítimas entre China y Filipinas han aumentado, especialmente en los últimos años. A diferencia de otros países reclamantes, el gobierno filipino ha denunciado públicamente las maniobras chinas y ha difundido videos e imágenes que muestran el uso de cañones de agua y bloqueos peligrosos atribuidos a las fuerzas de China.

La cancillería filipina reiteró su apoyo a los funcionarios nacionales y subrayó que las opiniones, tanto de sus representantes como de quienes discrepan, forman parte de la “robusta pluralidad de ideas” en una sociedad democrática.

Por su parte, la embajada de China protestó por las declaraciones de Tarriela, acusándolo de “exagerar los problemas marítimos, confundir el bien y el mal, tergiversar los hechos, incitar a la confrontación, engañar a la opinión pública y socavar los intereses y la dignidad nacionales de China”. El portavoz adjunto de la embajada, Guo Wei, calificó de “ignorantes y arrogantes” las opiniones de Tarriela.

Tarriela respondió a Guo Wei en una publicación en redes sociales, señalando: “Estoy empezando a pensar que disfrutas usar las redes sociales aquí en Filipinas porque no tienes tal libertad en tu país”.

La senadora Risa Hontiveros afirmó que los diplomáticos chinos han violado la Convención de Viena sobre Relaciones Diplomáticas al intentar restringir las declaraciones y críticas de funcionarios filipinos en territorio nacional. Hontiveros calificó a la embajada china como “un mal invitado” en Filipinas.

En respuesta, la misión diplomática china manifestó que no busca silenciar a nadie, pero reaccionará ante intentos de “difamar” a China y a sus líderes. La embajada cuestionó a Hontiveros, quien es vista como posible candidata en las elecciones presidenciales y vicepresidenciales de 2028, preguntando: “¿Realmente estás defendiendo el interés de Filipinas y los filipinos? ¿O simplemente estás persiguiendo tus propios beneficios políticos?”.

(Con información de AP)

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Monday publicly backed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and federal law enforcement leaders operating in Minnesota as tensions flare following Saturday’s fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. 

Trump announced Monday that he would deploy border czar Tom Homan to Minnesota, prompting questions about whether the move reflected any frustration with the officials already overseeing the response on the ground.

«Secretary Noem still has the utmost confidence and trust of the president of the United States, and she’s continuing to oversee the entire Department of Homeland Security and all of the immigration enforcement that’s taking place across the whole entire country,» Leavitt said during a press briefing Monday when asked if the president was dissatisfied with how the officials on the ground handled the shooting. 

The Department of Homeland Security oversees U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Secret Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), meaning Noem was juggling the immigration crackdown as well as a massive snow storm that rocked a large portion of the U.S. Sunday. 

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«Of course, Secretary Noem is also in charge of FEMA, and we are in the wake of a brutal winter storm where hundreds of thousands of Americans have been impacted by that,» Leavitt continued. «So border czar Homan is in a unique position to drop everything and go to Minnesota to continue having these productive conversations with state and local officials. And I know that he’s catching a plane in just a few hours to do just that.» 

Leavitt also defended senior United States Border Patrol Commander Gregor Bovino during the press conference, calling him a «wonderful man, and he’s a great professional.»

«He is going to have very much continue to lead Customs and Border Patrol, throughout and across the country,» Leavitt said. «Mr. Homan will be the main point of contact on the ground in Minneapolis to follow up.» 

President Donald Trump said earlier Monday that he was deploying the border czar to Minnesota and that he would report directly to the president, sparking questions over whether Trump’s confidence in his federal immigration law enforcement officials was slipping. 

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at press conference to discuss ongoing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, at One World Trade Center in New York City, Jan. 8, 2026.  (David ‘Dee’ Delgado/Reuters)

«I am sending Tom Homan to Minnesota tonight. He has not been involved in that area, but knows and likes many of the people there. Tom is tough but fair, and will report directly to me,» Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Leavitt told Fox Digital that «Homan will be managing ICE operations on the ground in Minnesota and coordinating with others on the ongoing fraud investigations,» but did not add whether the president has lost confidence in current leadership on the ground. 

A protester is detained by Federal agents near the scene where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE officer last week, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Minneapolis.(AP Photo/Adam Gray) (Adam Gray/The Associated Press )

Tensions in Minnesota further flared over the weekend when 37-year-old Pretti was shot and killed by Border Patrol Saturday. Federal authorities say Pretti, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ICU nurse, approached agents with a 9 mm handgun and did not cooperate when they tried to disarm him. 

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The fatal shooting follows another fatal shooting on Jan. 7 of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. Good’s and Pretti’s deaths have spurred an outpouring of condemnation and outrage from critics of the administration, arguing the government has blood on its hands and heightening protest confrontations with law enforcement officials. 

Leavitt added Monday that Homan has the «full trust and faith of the president» as he travels to Minnesota and continues delivering on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. 

«Mr. Homan is the point person for cooperating with state and local authorities and corresponding with them again, to achieve this level of cooperation, to subdue the chaos on the streets of Minneapolis,» she said. «And I would just point out that Mr. Homan is someone who has been lauded for many, many decades for his experience working in law enforcement.»

Leavitt pointed to an old Washington Post headline celebrating Homan a decade ago. 

«In fact, this is a Washington Post headline from nine years ago, 2016: Meet the man the White House is honored for deporting illegal immigrants. And I would remind everyone in this room that it was former President Barack Hussein Obama who awarded a medal to Mr. Homan,» she continued. 

Federal immigration officers deploy tear gas at protesters after a shooting Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Minneapolis.  (Abbie Parr/The Associated Press )

Trump revealed on Truth Social Monday that he had a productive phone call with Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, who he said requested that the local government work with federal officials amid the chaos. 

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«It was a very good call, and we, actually, seemed to be on a similar wavelength. I told Governor Walz that I would have Tom Homan call him, and that what we are looking for are any and all Criminals that they have in their possession,» Trump wrote. 

President Donald Trump arrives at a dedication ceremony for a portion of Southern Boulevard that the Town of Palm Beach Council recently voted to rename President Donald J. Trump Boulevard at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida, Jan. 16, 2026. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)

«The Governor, very respectfully, understood that, and I will be speaking to him in the near future. He was happy that Tom Homan was going to Minnesota, and so am I! We have had such tremendous SUCCESS in Washington, D.C., Memphis, Tennessee, and New Orleans, Louisiana, and virtually every other place that we have ‘touched’ and, even in Minnesota, Crime is way down, but both Governor Walz and I want to make it better!» Trump continued in his post. 

Walz’s office told Fox Digital Monday that the governor had a «productive» call with Trump, pressing for impartial investigations into the Minneapolis shootings involving federal agents — and urging a reduction in the federal footprint in Minnesota.

Gov. Tim Walz held a productive phone call with President Donald Trump Monday as tensions flare in Minnesota, the president shared on Truth Social.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

«The President agreed that he would talk to his Department of Homeland Security about ensuring the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is able to conduct an independent investigation, as would ordinarily be the case,» Walz’s office continued. «The President also agreed to look into reducing the number of federal agents in Minnesota and working with the state in a more coordinated fashion on immigration enforcement regarding violent criminals.» 

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Walz’s office said the governor also «reminded» Trump that Minnesota’s Department of Corrections honors federal immigration detainers — and that there isn’t a «single documented» instance of the agency releasing someone from state prison without first offering to facilitate a smooth transfer of custody.

Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado argued that a successful democratic transition for her country would rapidly transform the nation’s economy and reverse years of instability, reshaping the region’s political landscape.

Machado told the New York Post in an interview that such an outcome would define Trump’s foreign policy legacy, comparing it to the fall of the Berlin Wall.

«The legacy to the world is going to be huge,» she explained. «You’re going to have a prosperous Venezuela and the region.… If you make a comparison in history, this would mean for the Americas as much as the fall of the Berlin Wall had for Europe. It’s equivalent.

«For the first time in history, you will have the Americas free of communism, dictatorship and narco-terrorism for the first time,» she added.

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Machado said she intends to return to Venezuela soon to help drive a democratic transition despite the risks she faces under the country’s current government.

«I need to be there. I want to go back as soon as possible,» Machado said.

Her planned return would come at a pivotal moment for Venezuela, as interim President Delcy Rodríguez leads a U.S.-backed transition following the removal of Nicolás Maduro.

Rodríguez, a close ally of Maduro, was sworn into office on Jan. 5 after U.S. forces ousted the ex-leader and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their compound in Caracas during a military operation.

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The State Department told Fox News that a «limited number» of people are working on the ground in Venezuela. (Jessica Koscielniak/Reuters; Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters)

The duo were flown to New York and arraigned in federal court on multiple charges to which they pleaded not guilty.

Rodríguez has since been working with the White House and has spoken with President Donald Trump by phone.

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Machado, however, voiced deep reservations about Rodríguez’s leadership, warning that the transition risks falling short without a broader break from the Maduro-era government.

«If Delcy Rodríguez stays, nothing truly changes,» she told the Post. «There will be no rule of law, no trust, no stability. Venezuelans will not come home under a criminal.»