Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, posted a poll and his ideas on how to stop Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Twitter on Monday, October 3.
Garry Kasparov, a former world champion, harshly criticized Musk’s “solution” to spark a discussion.
Elon Musk, the wealthiest man in the world, offered four suggestions for “Ukraine-Russia Peace” in a tweet:
the formal recognition of the Crimean peninsula as Russian territory (Russia illegitimately annexed the region from Ukraine in 2014), the maintenance of a reliable water supply for Crimea, Ukraine’s commitment to remaining neutral and renouncing NATO, and the UN’s supervision of another round of referendums on Russian annexation in several eastern Ukrainian regions, which would allow Russia to take control of the areas if the vote is successful.
This was followed by a survey in which more than 2 million people participated, with 60.2% of them responding “No,” and two more remarks from Elon Musk, who stated: “This is quite likely to be the outcome in the end – it’s just a question of how many die before then. It’s also important to note that nuclear war could, albeit unlikely, result from this dispute.
One of the most well-known reporters covering the conflict, Illia Ponomarenko of the Kyiv Independent, responded by writing: “People – Elon Musk simply stated something foolish on Twitter regarding an issue he has very little knowledge about.
Although he should be laughed into oblivion for his botched sh**posting attempt, there’s no use in making him your enemy right now. Additionally, the pro-Ukraine Andrij Melnyk tweeted, “Fuck off is my very civilized reply to you @elonmusk,” which instantly went viral. Meanwhile, the pro-Russian Volodymyr Zelensky wrote, “Do you think people prefer a pro-Russian or pro-Ukraine Musk better?”
Garry Kasparov was compelled to respond to Musk’s post. This is moral folly, a repetition of Kremlin propaganda, a betrayal of Ukrainian bravery and sacrifice, and it prioritizes a few minutes spent reading about Crimea on Wikipedia over the horrifying reality of Putin’s murderous conflict right now. Who are you to repay years of Putin’s war crimes with Ukrainian blood and territory, Kasparov added in a tweet. What wicked deeds need to be undone in order to pronounce them? You can still erase this and claim you were high. Thank you. Answering the common fallacies: 1)
Russia invaded Ukraine again this year after attacking and occupying it in 2014 when it was neutral. Never once more 2) Giving up to Putin rather than resisting him is the worst nuclear threat. 3. When Russia is vanquished, there will be true peace. 4) It is not the way of the free world; it is the way of dictators to justify changing national borders by force. 5)
The people of Ukraine and their territory are not commodities to be bought or sold by outside parties, much less to a regime dedicated to their mass murder and ethnic cleansing.
Elon Musk made the decision to respond, but in an aggressive, passive-aggressive manner as opposed to a helpful one. And like so many others, I commended you for your deeds. But should one act or word be judged on its own merits, or should one act or statement buy amnesty for later bad ones? Should Ukrainians who expressed gratitude to you for Starlink keep quiet when you disparage them with Kremlin talking points? In addition to thousands of people expressing their support for Garry, Kasparov responded.