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The Wall Street Journal reported that Russian leader Vladimir Putin requested Elon Musk to refrain from providing Starlink services in Taiwan as a favor to Xi Jinping.
Gotham/GC Images, SERGEI GUNEYEV/POOL/AFP via Getty Images, Contributor/Getty Images
- According to The Wall Street Journal, Vladimir Putin asked Elon Musk not to provide Starlink services in Taiwan as a favor to China.
- This request came at a time when Moscow was increasingly dependent on trade with Beijing.
- The Journal noted that Musk has maintained regular communication with Putin since 2022.
Russian President Vladimir Putin allegedly requested that Elon Musk deny Starlink access to Taiwan as a courtesy for China’s Xi Jinping, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal.
The publication referenced several unnamed officials from the US, Europe, and Russia who indicated that since late 2022, Musk has been in consistent contact with the Russian leader. Their discussions reportedly covered personal matters along with business and geopolitical issues.
This situation raises significant concerns for the United States given that SpaceX—Musk’s aerospace company—holds substantial defense contracts with both the Pentagon and NASA. A recent analysis by The New York Times highlighted that SpaceX has secured $3.6 billion worth of contracts with the Defense Department primarily focused on launching American satellites into orbit and an additional $11.8 billion contract with NASA.
The report indicates that late in 2023 marked the first instance where Musk received a request from Kremlin officials regarding Starlink’s activation over Taiwan. This information was provided by an unnamed former Russian intelligence officer cited by The Journal.
Furthermore, this request appears motivated by Moscow’s growing reliance on Chinese trade relations. However, it remains unclear how many times such requests were made by Putin or his administration based on findings from The Journal.
The Chinese embassy in Washington stated they were unaware of any specific arrangements related to this matter and did not respond outside normal business hours when approached for comments by Business Insider.
Taiwan currently lacks official access to Starlink due to its legal requirements mandating satellite services be offered through local partnerships where majority ownership is held domestically. Reports indicate SpaceX is unwilling to comply with such conditions; consequently, Taiwan is developing its own low-earth orbit satellite network instead.
Musk’s Evolving Stance on Ukraine
Musk’s interactions with Putin seem aligned with his changing stance towards Ukraine starting late 2022. Prior to this shift, he had actively supported Kyiv by supplying approximately 15,000 Starlink terminals during their conflict against Russia.
By October of that year however he began seeking financial support from the Pentagon for continued free service provision while expressing concerns about financial sustainability via social media posts.He tweeted about these challenges publicly at this time too.
In addition,he conducted a poll suggesting peace terms reflecting some demands made by Russia during their ongoing war including formal recognition of Crimea as part of Russia alongside assurances regarding Ukraine’s neutrality status which sparked outrage among pro-Ukrainian supporters online.
Musk’s Justifications Amid Controversy
Musk defended his suggestions stating they aimed at preventing further loss of life within Ukraine while mitigating risks associated nuclear escalation.
“Clearly we are pro-Ukraine,”he tweeted, noting SpaceX had incurred around $80 million expenses providing free service there thus far.
A Political Landscape Shaped By Ties To Power Players
A couple weeks later Ian Bremmer—a political scientist known for founding Eurasia Group—reported via email correspondence indicating prior conversations between him & putin occurred before tweeting controversial peace proposals suggesting major escalations if goals weren’t met within ukraine contextually speaking
Bremmer claimed putin warned musk about potential consequences should objectives fail leading towards “major escalation.”
< h5>Diverging Accounts From Key Figures
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p>Both musk & kremlin denied Bremmer’s assertions stating “I have only spoken once” referring back roughly eighteen months ago discussing space-related topics exclusively according him directly
This conversation supposedly took place April twenty-one prior invasion commencement period itself
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