Russian leader Vladimir Putin took a moment to praise Elon Musk — Tesla and SpaceX founder — on Tuesday while attending the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok.
Musk’s recently disclosed decision to deny Ukraine’s request to use the Starlink satellite system against the Russian invasion has become the subject of international controversy.
“Elon Musk … is undoubtedly an outstanding person. It must be admitted. I think the whole world admits it. He is an active, talented businessman,” Putin gushed on Tuesday.
Putin tossed in a jab that some of Musk’s success is thanks to “the support of the American state.”
Reuters pointed out that Putin is not the only Russian leader to praise Musk since the controversy over Starlink broke out. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev hailed Musk as “the last adequate mind in North America.”
The Starlink debate began when a new biography of Musk from author Walter Isaacson claimed the billionaire ordered his technicians to disable the satellite network before Ukraine could use it to coordinate an attack on Russian naval assets in September 2022.
Musk used the social media platform formerly known as Twitter — but renamed “X” by Musk after he purchased it for reasons that elude less adequate minds — to deny Isaacson’s account of the incident.
“The Starlink regions in question were not activated. SpaceX did not deactivate anything,” Musk said.
The Starlink regions in question were not activated. SpaceX did not deactivate anything.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 7, 2023
“There was an emergency request from government authorities to activate Starlink all the way to Sevastopol,” he explained. “The obvious intent being to sink most of the Russian fleet at anchor. If I had agreed to their request, then SpaceX would be explicitly complicit in a major act of war and conflict escalation.”
Isaacson conceded on Tuesday that his account of the incident was incorrect.
“The Ukrainians THOUGHT coverage was enabled all the way to Crimea, but it was not. They asked Musk to enable it for their drone sub attack on the Russian fleet. Musk did not enable it because he thought, probably correctly, that would cause a major war,” he Xed (or whatever the proper term for “tweeted” has become).
“Much appreciated, Walter!” Musk Xed back at him.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) called Monday for a congressional investigation into Musk’s decisions on Starlink and Ukraine.
“Congress needs to investigate what’s happened here and whether we have adequate tools to make sure foreign policy is conducted by the government and not by one billionaire,” she said, prompted by Isaacson’s account of the incident.
Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall on Monday more modestly suggested that the Pentagon should ensure its contracts for Starlink will not be nullified by a similar CEO decision in a moment of crisis.
“If we’re going to rely upon commercial architectures or commercial systems for operational use, then we have to have some assurances that they’re going to be available,” Kendall said at the Air Force Association convention in National Harbor, Maryland.
“Otherwise, they are a convenience and maybe an economy in peacetime, but they’re not something we can rely upon in wartime,” Kendall said.
Kendall noted that the U.S. military has several paid contracts with SpaceX for services, including Starlink access and a plan to develop a rocket that could quickly deliver materials to conflict or disaster zones. Musk does not have such a contract with Ukraine, having decided to provide Starlink services for free after Russia invaded in February 2022.
