By Wall Street Journal, which cites sources among present and erstwhile officials from the US, Europe and Russia, the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, was to hold secret talks with Vladimir Putin on personal, business and geopolitical tensions. In addition to meetings with Putin Musk, he besides regularly spoke with high-ranking Russian officials, including Sergei Kirijenko, Deputy Head of the Russian President's Administration. These contacts were to take place from the second half of 2022 until 2024.
Numerous clues
According to the journal, Elon Musk's intensification of Russia's contacts coincided with a change in his attitude to support Ukraine and with his repetition of Russian narratives. This included, among others, his peace plan establishing the dedication of Russia to Crimea and the neutrality of Ukraine. uncertainty was besides raised by the broadcast on the X portal of the interview, in which right-wing writer Tucker Carlson spoke to Putin.
By Wall Street Journal Musk was to be under pressure, both publically and privately. Dmitri Rogozin, then head of Roskosmos, threatened him in public space, and a erstwhile Russian intelligence officer revealed that Putin had asked Musk not to activate the Starlink strategy over Taiwan, which was to be a bow to Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The company has not received approval to operate in Taiwan, although the Starlink website reports that the strategy will be available there soon.
Although Musk's secret talks with Putin are presented as a well-kept secret, as early as October 2022 Ian Bremmer of the Eurasia Group reported that Musk had told him about his conversation with the Russian president. Musk denied these claims, saying he had only 1 conversation with Putin in 2021, and the subject was Space.
Access to top secret documents
According to information Wall Street Journal, billionaire contacts with the Russian president rise concerns in the Pentagon and intelligence services, given the function SpaceX plays as a US government contractor and a key partner in the space program. For this reason, Musk has access to classified papers top secret.
Nevertheless, 1 of the reporters noted that no alarms were raised suggesting a possible breach of safety rules by Musk.
Elon Musk has not commented on the information published by Wall Street Journal.
