Elon Musk has reportedly been in contact with Vladimir Putin since late 2022, with their closeness a reason to worry for western security officials.
Former US, Russian and European officials claimed the Russian president asked Musk to turn off his Starlink internet service to Taiwan as a favour to China. Two high-ups told the Wall Street Journal about this outlandish request, while maintaining the unlikely duo had held intimate discussions. Russia had previously looked to amend their relations with China following sanctions being imposed on Putin’s nation after the invasion of Ukraine.
Although it is unclear whether or not Musk actually did Starlink services for Taiwan, mad Vlad’s plea appears to be an extension of him trying to cosy up to Chinese premier Xi Jinping.
(Image: Getty Images)
The SpaceX founder’s conversations with Putin over the last two years have touched on geopolitical tensions and personal and business topics, according to the WSJ.
Russian forces were reportedly attempting to purchase Starlink terminals earlier this year in order to aid the war in Ukraine. House Democrats previously warned in March that Russia’s use of the system could raise national security issues.
Such was the concern that two Democrats on the House Oversight Committee penned a letter to SpaceX demanding information about Russia’s potential acquisition of the terminals, according to the Washington Post.
(Image: Getty Images)
Musk has managed to cultivate close ties with US military and intelligence over the years. The SpaceX boss has branded claims of association with Putin “absurd”, although he has not yet commented on the claims published in the WSJ.
Today (October 25) the Kremlin threw water on the claims in the WSJ report, dubbing them as “not true” and “absolutely false”.
Earlier this month, the US imposed its first sanctions on Chinese firms for making weapons for Russia while accusing the nation of collaborating with Putin’s defence firms to produce drones for the war effort.
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