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Elon Musk claims ’there is no way in hell’ Putin could lose Ukraine war Here is why
Elon Musk joined a forum on X Spaces to discuss a Senate bill providing assistance to Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. Musk expressed skepticism about a Ukrainian victory.
Elon Musk told US Republican senators “there is no way in hell” that Russian President Vladimir Putin could lose the war on Ukraine, weighing in on a conflict that has been affected by Musk’s own Starlink satellite services, Bloomberg has reported. His comments came in a forum which was held on X Spaces.
In the forum, the discussions included opponents of a Senate bill that would provide further assistance for Ukraine to continue battling the full-scale Russian invasion that began two years ago. Alongside Musk were former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, co-founder of Craft Ventures LLC David Sacks, and state representatives Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, JD Vance of Ohio, and Mike Lee of Utah.
Musk’s comments came as he agreed with Ron Johnson’s statement who said that those who expect a Ukraine victory were “living in a fantasy world.”
“We gotta kill this thing,” Vance said of the $95 billion measure, of which $60 billion in assistance for Ukraine as well as funding for Israel, Taiwan, and humanitarian aid for Gaza.
He went on to say that he hoped citizens would get in touch with their legislators on the Ukraine bill. “This spending does not help Ukraine. Prolonging the war does not help Ukraine,” he said as reported by Bloomberg.
The billionaire chief executive officer of Tesla Inc had expressed similar sentiments before on X, 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 Congress.
He said there was pressure on Putin to see the fight through. “If he were to back off, he would be assassinated,” Musk said. He 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.
His 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.
Musk said his interest is in stopping 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 is that person likely to be a peacenik? Probably not.” Musk said such a person would likely be “even more hardcore than Putin,” as quoted by Bloomberg.
Meanwhile, Democratic President Joe Biden and a bipartisan group of lawmakers including the top US Senate Republican on Tuesday urged the Republican-controlled House of Representatives to take up a $95.34 billion military aid package for Ukraine and other allies. The measure passed the Senate in a 70-29 vote shortly before dawn on Tuesday after a hardline group of Republicans spent the night trying to block it. But it was unclear if House Speaker Mike Johnson would even bring it up for a vote in the chamber his party controls by a narrow 219-212 margin.
"I call on the speaker to let the full House speak its mind and not allow a minority of the most extreme voices in the House to block this bill even from being voted on," Biden said in remarks from the White House. "Supporting this bill is standing up to Putin, opposing it is playing into Putin's hands."
Ukrainian officials warned of weapons shortages at a time when Russia is pressing ahead with renewed attacks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy quickly hailed passage of the bill. "American assistance brings just peace in Ukraine closer and restores global stability, resulting in increased security and prosperity for all Americans and all the free world," Zelenskiy said on the social media platform X.
(With inputs from Bloomberg, Reuters)
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Business NewsNewsWorldElon Musk claims ’there is no way in hell’ Putin could lose Ukraine war Here is why
First Published:14 Feb 2024, 01:08 PM IST
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