A Labour MP has questioned whether Elon Musk should be sanctioned by the UK government – accusing the billionaire of playing a “double game” over Ukraine.
Chris Bryant, who chairs the All Party Parliamentary Group on Russia, said there are “questions” over the tycoon’s Starlink satellite system, which has experienced outages in the war-torn country.
It comes amid reports that Ukrainian forces suffered “catastrophic” communications losses due to issues with Starlink devices – made by Mr Musk’s SpaceX company – on the frontline.
Mr Musk last week sparked a huge backlash when he posted a Twitter poll on Russia’s annexation of four regions in Ukraine – also asking followers whether Crimea should be permanently surrendered to Moscow.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was among those who voiced their outrage – with reports claiming Mr Musk spoke to Vladimir Putin last week.
MP Mr Bryant today told The Mirror there can be no “moral equivalence” in the conflict, and those who side with Putin should be sanctioned.
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parliamentlive.tv)
Today Mr Bryant told The Mirror that the government must investigate the issues with the devices.
He said: “I want the government to investigate the issue about Starlink outages.
“And I want Musk to understand there is not a moral equivalence in this conflict. Russia is the aggressor. People who side with Putin should be sanctioned.”
A Ukrainian security source told The Financial Times that the device blackouts had been “catastrophic” as troops were unable to communicate on the battlefield.
Although SpaceX declined to explain the cause of the outages, Mr Musk later wrote on Twitter: “As for what’s happening on the battlefield, that’s classified.”
Speaking in the House of Commons, Rhondda MP Mr Bryant asked Defence Minister Alec Shelbrooke: “Can I ask him about Elon Musk? Because he seems to be playing a double game at the moment and his tweet earlier on this week I think was profoundly unhelpful.
“There are also questions about why there have been outages of the Starlink system which may have… made bigger difficulties for Ukraine.
“Is there a moment at which we might have to consider sanctioning Elon Musk?”
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SPUTNIK/AFP via Getty Images)
A surprised Mr Shelbrooke replied: “Sanctions remain under review at all times and everything will be taken into consideration in the round.
“I think we must always make sure we’re well aware of what all the facts are, not just react to social media, and then those things can be looked at and whether any sanctions would be appropriate or not.”
Last week Mr Musk posted a poll on Twitter that sparked outrage – including from the Ukrainian president.
Asking followers to answer yes or no, the billionaire asked: “Ukraine-Russia Peace: – Redo elections of annexed regions under UN supervision. Russia leaves if that is will of the people. – Crimea formally part of Russia, as it has been since 1783 (until Khrushchev’s mistake). – Water supply to Crimea assured. – Ukraine remains neutral.”
In two follow up tweets he wrote: “This is highly likely to be the outcome in the end – just a question of how many die before then
“Also worth noting that a possible, albeit unlikely, outcome from this conflict is nuclear war.”
Mr Zelensky responded by posting a poll of his own, asking: “Which Elon Musk do you prefer” – giving the options “one who supports Ukraine” or “one who supports Russia”.
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AFP via Getty Images)
The Mirror has contacted SpaceX for comment.
It comes as G7 leaders vowed that Putin will be held to account for “war crimes” carried out in recent days – as “whiny” Russian diplomats face humiliation on the world stage.
In a strongly-worded statement, G7 nations – the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the USA and the EU – warned that the Russian President will be held responsible for sickening attacks on civilian targets.
Prime Minister Liz Truss today spoke with her counterparts and Mr Zelensky, and in a joint statement they said: “We will hold President Putin and those responsible to account.”
They pledged to never recognise Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian regions – Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhya and Kherson – or the “sham referenda” Moscow uses to justify it.
The joint statement continued: “We deplore deliberate Russian escalatory steps, including the partial mobilisation of reservists and irresponsible nuclear rhetoric, which is putting global peace and security at risk.
“We reaffirm that any use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons by Russia would be met with severe consequences.”
They again called on Russia to “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its troops”.
The G7 leaders also called on Belarus to “stop enabling the Russian war of aggression by permitting Russian armed forces to use Belarusian territory and by providing support to the Russian military”.
It comes as more than 100 countries are expected to condemn Russia’s illegal annexation of four regions in Ukraine.
Putin’s isolated regime is looking “weaker and weaker” by the day as it attempts to strong-arm nations into supporting it in a crunch UN vote this week.
Western officials are confident that at least 100 members of the General Assembly will vote to call on Russian troops to withdraw from the four regions.
Putin’s diplomats are desperately trying to convince nations that the West is to blame for rising food prices and frame the dispute as “the West versus the rest” – but officials say they are looking “weaker and weaker”.
Officials dismissively said: “This is a country that has a permanent seat on the security council, a country that’s meant to be a superpower but they’re sounding very whiny and isolated indeed.”
Russia is targeting African nations with which it has historical relations, officials say, in a desperate effort to cushion what looks to be a humiliating defeat which will leave it “bruised and isolated”.
The 193 members of the General Assembly are set to vote on a resolution condemning Putin’s latest territory grab in Ukraine and calling on troops to withdraw.