WASHINGTON, March 20 (Reuters) - Billionaire Elon Musk,

U.S. President Donald Trump's close ally, is due to be briefed

on Friday by the Pentagon on the U.S. military's plan for any

war that might break out with China, the New York Times reported

on Thursday, citing U.S. officials.

Access to the closely guarded military plan would mark an

sharp expansion of Musk's role as a Trump adviser who has

spearheaded efforts to cut U.S. government spending.

It would also fuel questions about conflicts of interest for

Musk, who as the head of both Tesla and SpaceX has

business interests in China and with the Pentagon.

The White House has previously said Musk will recuse himself

if any conflicts of interest arise between his business dealings

and his role in cutting federal government spending.

The briefing for the China war plan has about 20 to 30

slides that lay out how the United States would fight such a

conflict, the New York Times reported.

The Pentagon confirmed that Musk will be visiting on Friday

but did not share further details. "The Defense Department is

excited to welcome Elon Musk to the Pentagon on Friday. He was

invited by Secretary (Pete) Hegseth and is just visiting," a

Pentagon spokesperson said.

Washington and Beijing have had tense relations for years

over differences ranging from access to technology, trade

tariffs and cybersecurity to TikTok, Taiwan, Hong Kong, human

rights and the origins of COVID-19.