Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov Photo: Sergei Bobylev/TASS
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that allegations of regular contacts between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US billionaire Elon Musk are false. According to him, the report published in The Wall Street Journal is “absolutely false”.
Earlier, The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk, the owner of Starlink and an ally of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, discussed private matters, business and geopolitical tensions with Putin. The newspaper also suggested that Putin asked Musk not to activate Starlink’s internet service in Taiwan as a gesture in favour of Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Peskov said that Putin and Musk had only had one contact, which took place “before 2022”. According to him, the conversation was introductory in nature and concerned technological prospects and innovations, which Musk considers promising.
“It was the only contact,” Peskov said, denying other claims as “absolutely false”. He also noted that such accusations come amid a fierce election campaign in the United States, where “opponents do not hesitate to use any methods”.
Peskov added that the Kremlin considers such statements to be a political manoeuvre and that they are “ordinary fabrications” that have no basis in fact.
