Donald Trump prepares to meet Barack Obama after US-wide protests

Donald Trump is preparing to enter the White House for the first time after his surprise election victory - following a night of protests.

Demonstrators descended on midtown Manhattan and advanced towards Trump Tower, the President-elect's home, screaming "Not my President" and brandishing placards.

In Oakland, California, a crowd of 6,000 protesters smashed the windows of storefronts, while in Chicago, police stopped 1,800 people from gathering outside the Trump International Hotel.

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In Los Angeles - one of dozens of towns and cities from coast to coast to see protests - a group of people burned an effigy of their elected Commander in Chief.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani - a Trump-aide - dismissed the protesters as "a bunch of cry-babies".

He told the Fox News Channel that most of the protesters were college-age students who seem to be "one percent of one percent of one percent."

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Mr Trump is set for a potentially frosty meeting as he meets Barack Obama at the White House to discuss January's handover of power.

As he does so, a judge is due to hold a hearing on what to allow into class-action lawsuit against the President-elect and his now defunct Trump University, which could see him appear in court weeks before he is inaugurated.

Another aide, New Jersey Senator Chris Christie, said Mr Trump's meeting with the outgoing President could take place without the need for apologies.

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Asked if Trump's earlier comments about Mr Obama's birth certificate and other statements made during the campaign were "just politics," Mr Christie said "everything is in the context of politics" - but he said that didn't mean his man didn't believe the things he was saying.

It came as reverberations of Mr Trump's win continued to echo around the world.

In Israel, a cabinet minister reacted to an earlier statement by one of Mr Trump's advisers - who said that the President-elect doesn't view Jewish settlements in Palestinian Territories as being an obstacle to peace - by calling for a renewed wave of building.

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In Russia, a top diplomat admitted that Moscow had contacts with Mr Trump's campaign team before his election as US president.

Interfax news agency quoted deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying "there were contacts" with influential people in Mr Trump's circle, but did not go into details about what the contacts consisted of.

The admission came after Mr Trump was described as a national security risk after apparently encouraging the Russians to spy on US government emails during the election campaign, amid claims Russian intelligence agencies were responsible for hacking the Democratic National Committee's (DNC) computer servers - something Mr Trump later denied.

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The foreign affairs ministry of China - which Mr Trump repeatedly criticised in his campaign speeches - told Sky News that its country's trade relationship with the US was what made relations "stable".

It added that it hoped the US could continue to view "our economic and trade relationship in an objective and unbiased perspective, and work with us to move forward such relationship".

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said he wanted Mr Trump to be clear on issues such as global trade, climate policy and future relations with NATO, after a campaign during which he criticised all three.

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Mr Juncker said: "We would like to know what intentions he has regarding the (NATO) alliance. We must know what climate policies he intends to pursue. This must be cleared up in the next few months."

The French President Francois Hollande echoed his words but went further by suggesting European countries should be ready to stand up to the President-elect if necessary.

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The talks between Mr Trump and Mr Obama are scheduled to begin at 11am (4pm UK time) in the Presidential building, where the First Lady Michelle Obama would also host Melania Trump.

Inside Trump Tower, the President-elect and his senior aides have been plotting their next steps - with a campaign source telling Reuters that they have been hunkered down in meetings to plan the administration's first 100 days, and decide who should serve in key staff positions.

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The White House has begun to make the President's daily briefing and other intelligence files available to Mr Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence, a courtesy that George W Bush extended to Barack Obama as he was preparing to take office.

Despite the protests, many in the US are looking forward to the prospect of a Trump presidency - even some from the Hispanic community.

Freelance journalist Luis Chaparro told Sky News that some saw him as the solution.

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"Lots of people here on the border thought Trump had the necessary guts to stand up for what he believed in and that Hillary was corrupt and a liar. So they opted for him," he said

But Mexican Valeria Padilla, who crosses the border from Juarez each day to study at the US University of El Paso, Texas, told Sky News: "I am worried, shocked and angry. I believe he will build the wall and that will be a disaster."

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