Elon Musk has secretly been in “regular contact” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Wall Street Journal reported today.
The paper attributed the information to current and former officials in the U.S., Europe and Russia. The sources said the calls between Musk and Putin began more than two years ago. In 2022, Musk stated that he had spoken with Putin only once over 18 months earlier.
The Journal reported that the calls covered personal topics, business and geopolitics. During the talks, Musk is believed to spoken with multiple high-ranking Russian officials. On one occasion, Putin reportedly asked Musk to avoid activating Starlink over Taiwan as a favor to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Starlink is a constellation of internet satellites that SpaceX Corp. began deploying in 2019. Today, it includes more than 6,300 satellites perched in low Earth orbit. Users connect to the constellation using compact antennas that SpaceX sells together with internet subscriptions.
According to the Journal, Musk has “unique visibility” into several U.S. space programs in his capacity as SpaceX’s chief executive. He reportedly possesses a security clearance that gives him access to some classified information.
On Wednesday, SpaceX used a reusable Falcon 9 rocket to deploy a collection of satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. It’s the third launch the company has carried as part of an NRO initiative focused on creating a so-called proliferated architecture. That’s reportedly a type of satellite constellation comprising numerous, relatively small systems designed for “capability and resilience.”
SpaceX also works with several other government agencies including NASA. Early today, a SpaceX spacecraft splashed down in the Gulf Of Mexico with a team of astronauts aboard. The Crew Dragon capsule returned the astronauts from the International Space Station following a monthslong stay in orbit.
Also this week, Yahoo Finance reported that Musk has become the second-largest financial backer of Donald Trump’s election campaign. New regulatory filings show that the SpaceX CEO has spent more than $118 million bankrolling a super PAC that supports the campaign. In September, Trump said that he plans to make make Musk the head of a “government efficiency commission.”
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson addressed the report about Musk’s talks with Putin during an event hosted by Semafor today. He said the matter “should be investigated.”
“If it’s true there have been multiple conversations with Elon Musk and the president of Russia, then that would be concerning, particularly for NASA and the Department of Defense,” Nelson said.