Elon Musk is ‘truly a genius,’ says Vladimir Putin

According to TechCrunch, Russian president Vladimir Putin said he and SpaceX chief Elon Musk are in close contact about Rassvet, Russia's counterpart to Starlink, and called Musk a genius who already operates more than 5,000 satellites while Russia is just beginning.

The article notes Musk has recently criticized Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and after the United States eased sanctions on Russia this month, Ukrainian officials worried Ukraine could lose access to Starshield, the military version of Starlink that Ukrainian forces depend on. For about ten days earlier this month, Ukrainian drones suffered frequent connectivity losses. The Wall Street Journal reported Musk ordered SpaceX to restrict Ukraine's Starlink access, though other accounts say the directive came from the White House. Musk posted on X that Ukraine breached terms of service by using the system for offensive drone strikes. Service in Ukraine appears to have returned to normal. Musk also wrote on X that if Starlink were shut off, the Ukrainian front line would collapse immediately.

Source

Elon Musk is ‘truly a genius,’ says Vladimir Putin — TechCrunch