Ukraine: If Putin backs off now, he could be assassinated, says Elon Musk
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Elon Musk, the world’s second wealthiest man now, has said Russian President Vladimir Putin cannot back off now from the ongoing war in Ukraine. “If he does so, he could be assassinated,” said the Tesla Inc., and SpaceX chief.
“There is pressure on Putin to see the fight through…If he were to back off, he would be assassinated,” Musk was quoted as saying in media reports.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began on February 24, 2022, goes on unabated amid the deaths of hundreds of thousands, wanton destruction, and millions of Ukrainians fleeing to neighboring countries.
According to reports, Musk told some US Republican senators “there is no way in hell” that President Putin could lose the war on Ukraine, weighing in on a conflict that has been affected by the Tesla chief’s own Starlink satellite services.
Musk’s comments came in a forum Monday on X Spaces, part of his X social media platform. The discussions included opponents of a US Senate bill that would provide further assistance for Ukraine to continue battling the full-scale Russian invasion that began two years ago.
He was joined by Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, JD Vance of Ohio, and Mike Lee of Utah, as well as Vivek Ramaswamy, a former Republican presidential candidate, and David Sacks, a co-founder of Craft Ventures LLC.
Musk agreed with Johnson’s observation that Putin would not lose in Ukraine, and those expecting Ukraine’s victory were “living in a fantasy world.”
“We gotta kill this thing,” Vance said of the USD 95 billion measure, which includes USD 60 billion in assistance for Ukraine as well as funding for Israel, Taiwan, and humanitarian aid for Gaza.
Musk said he hoped Americans would contact their elected representatives about the Ukraine bill. “This spending does not help Ukraine. Prolonging the war does not help Ukraine.”
Expressing similar sentiments before on X, he has been doubting Ukraine’s ability to win the war and mocking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s requests for aid. The tech mogul has come under criticism from Ukraine and Democratic members of the US Congress.
Musk told the senators he’s sometimes accused of being a Putin apologist, but said that accusation was “absurd.” He said his companies “have probably done more to undermine Russia than anything.”
He cited SpaceX providing Starlink internet service to Ukraine, which has been critical to the nation’s communications after Russia invaded, as well as SpaceX taking business away from Russia’s space launch business.
Musk’s views contrast strongly with President Joe Biden and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who argue that aiding Ukraine’s defense against the Kremlin is in America’s interests and will help deter other autocrats from starting wars of their own.
He said he wanted to stop the deaths of people on both sides of the war, adding he doubted the wisdom of seeking Putin’s ouster.
“For those who want regime change in Russia, they should think about who is the person that could take out Putin, and if that person is likely to be a peacenik. Probably not.”
Musk said such a person would likely be “even more hardcore than Putin.”
