Oct 25, 2024 23:00:00

Elon Musk has been in contact with President Putin since 2022 and has been asked not to provide Starlink services in Taiwan for China's sake.

Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X, once

challenged President Putin to a one-on-one fight on social media for Ukraine . It is unclear whether this was the cause of the relationship, but The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports that Musk has been in contact with President Putin since the second half of 2022.

Elon Musk's Secret Conversations With Vladimir Putin - WSJ
https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/musk-putin-secret-conversations-37e1c187

Musk's huge Starlink satellite business is a big reason he's so all in for Trump - The Washington Post

https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/10/24/musk-trump-starlink-satellites-election/

Musk has been in contact with Putin, Russian officials since 2022, WSJ reports
https://kyivindependent.com/musk-putin-wsj/

When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, there were concerns that telecommunications infrastructure would become unavailable in Ukraine, but Musk immediately made Starlink available in Ukraine, where the service was not available at the time.

Elon Musk's instructions make satellite internet 'Starlink' available in Ukraine in no time - GIGAZINE

By Tim Reckmann

In March 2022, he will challenge President Putin to a one-on-one battle.

Elon Musk challenges Putin to a one-on-one fight, the winner takes all of Ukraine - GIGAZINE

From these actions, Musk seemed to be taking a position of supporting Ukraine, but in 2023, when it became clear that the Ukrainian military was using Starlink as infrastructure for drones for reconnaissance and attack purposes, SpaceX made

changes to Starlink so that it could not control drones . At that time, SpaceX explained that 'Starlink is intended to be used for humanitarian purposes and was not intended to be used for attacks.'

Then in the summer of 2023, it was reported that Musk was in personal contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Elon Musk has a huge influence in the war between Russia and Ukraine - GIGAZINE

By Steve Jurvetson

In February 2024, it was reported that the Russian military was using Starlink on the front lines.

Russian military reportedly using SpaceX's satellite internet 'Starlink' on the front lines of the war with Ukraine - GIGAZINE

In October 2022, Musk posted on X that he had 'spoken with President Putin only once, around April 2021,' but now the WSJ has pointed out, based on testimony from people familiar with the matter, that Musk had been in contact with Putin since the latter half of 2022.

The WSJ also said that Musk had been asked by Putin not to offer Starlink service in Taiwan, out of consideration for the Chinese government's claim that the island is part of its territory.

Musk did not comment on the matter, and US officials said they were 'not aware of it.' The Russian government also denied having had any contact with Musk.