NASA official says WSJ report that Elon Musk was in frequent contact with Putin should be investigated
‘Varney & Co.’ broadcaster Stuart Varney argues that Elon Musk’s test flight of his Starship rocket opens the door to a new era of space exploration.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Friday that a report that says SpaceX owner Elon Musk has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin since 2022 “should be investigated.”
The former astronaut and member of the US parliament admitted that Musk does not manage the day-to-day operations of the aerospace company, which works closely with NASA. But he said that while SpaceX has been “remarkably successful” and aims to build a spacecraft to land on the moon, the Wall Street Journal report raises questions.
“I don’t know if that story is true, [but] I think it should be investigated,” said Nelson. “If this story is true, that there have been many conversations between Elon Musk and the Russian president, I think that will affect, especially NASA, the Department of Defense. , in some of the intelligence agencies.”
NASA is working with SpaceX, whose Dragon capsule returned three astronauts and one cosmonaut to the International Space Station on Friday.
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NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said Friday that a report that says SpaceX owner Elon Musk has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin since 2022 “should be investigated.” (Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Musk has spoken regularly with Putin since 2022 about international politics, personal and business matters, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing US, European and Russian officials.
The journal noted that SpaceX received a US government contract listed at $1.8 billion in 2021, and Musk has a top secret security clearance.
A US official said people in the government who knew about Musk’s relationship with Putin “didn’t like it”, but no warnings of a national security breach had been raised, the Journal reported.
In one of their conversations, Putin asked Musk to delay using Starlink over Taiwan as a favor to China, the Journal reported. Starlink has never received a Starlink license in Taiwan, where there are restrictions on foreign satellite providers.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Elon Musk and Russian President Vladimir Putin have been in regular contact since 2022. (Contributor/Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Months after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, more restrictions were placed on Ukraine’s military use of Starlink, the Journal reported. Musk reportedly said the restrictions were more than concerns about a nuclear war in Crimea.
SpaceX denied the Journal’s claims in a statement posted on social media, calling the story “misleading” and noting that the company has helped Ukraine since Russia invaded in 2022.
“Starlink has kept Ukrainians online and connected to the rest of the world during the conflict, and Starlink has defended itself against major attempts to disrupt those connections, at great cost to the company,” the statement said in part.
“Regarding Taiwan, as even the Taiwanese government has confirmed, Starlink is not available there because Taiwan has not granted us an operating license, and the regulators have refused to remove the requirement that a foreign entity own 51% of Starlink to operate there. Such a situation is not acceptable in any market in which it operates. This it has nothing to do with Russia or China.”
Regarding the report, Musk also commented on X, “Welp, ‘Trump is Hitler’ for the Swamp didn’t work. Might as well give ‘Elon a Russian agent’ a whirl.” He added two laughing emojis.
Bill Nelson is the director of NASA. (Saul Loeb-Pool/Getty Images/Getty)
Musk has endorsed former President Trump for president and there has been speculation that he could hold a position in Trump’s second administration.
A Pentagon spokesman told the Journal, “We do not comment on any individual’s security clearance, review or status or on matters of personnel security policy in the context of reports about the actions of any individual.”
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a press conference on Friday, “I am not in a position to confirm the authenticity of those reports, and we will refer them to Mr. Musk to speak to his private communications.”
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FOX Business has reached out to SpaceX and NASA for comment.
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