Elon Musk and Putin to talk regularly since late 2022: report

According to a report, Elon Musk has regularly held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on various topics in the last two years.

The billionaire SpaceX owner and Kremlin leaders, who are still at war with Ukraine, have discussed geopolitical divisions, trade and personal topics since late 2022. wall street journal The report cited several current and former American, European and Russian officials.

Putin asked Musk during a conversation Do not turn on your Starlink satellite internet service On China’s side, two people on Taiwan briefed the outlet on the matter.

A former Russian intelligence officer told the Journal that the request came late last year.

According to the outlet, Starlink is not allowed to provide internet service in Taiwan, which has banned non-Taiwan satellite operators. The Starlink map shows the date of service is unknown at this time.

SpaceX, which runs Starlink, has business with the US military and intelligence agencies, giving Musk security clearance for some classified information. But no red flags were raised over potential security breaches regarding Musk’s communications with Putin, the newspaper reported.

Still, a person familiar with the conversation reportedly said, “They don’t like it,” referring to the U.S. government’s views on the Musk-Putin dialogue.

The person told the Journal that the federal government faces a dilemma because of how much it relies on Musk’s technologies.

Musk has not commented on the story, but has said in the past that it is “absurd” that he would be labeled an apologist for Russia.

After this, last year he had to face the heat it won’t activate Ukraine drone attack on its Starlink satellite internet network near the Crimean coast, but argued his technique Not for military operations.

A Kremlin spokesman said Musk’s only contact with Putin was by telephone in which the pair talked about “space as well as current and future technologies”.

Musk has become a central figure in former President Donald Trump’s campaign to retake the White House, appearing at rallies with the 45th president.

When asked about Musk’s relationship with Putin, the Trump campaign praised the Tesla CEO as a “once-in-a-generation industry leader,” while Trump emphasized that “Russia’s aggression We will re-establish our peace through a strong foreign policy to prevent and end war.” In Ukraine,” according to the Journal.