President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called the excessive political influence of American entrepreneur Elon Musk dangerous. In his opinion, the concentration of large financial resources and the ability to influence the political processes of other states creates risks primarily for smaller countries.
Zelensky said this in an interview with the German television channel ZDF, which was published on November 4. The conversation with the Ukrainian president was conducted by German TV host Jan Böhmermann.
During the interview, the host drew attention to Musk's post on the social network X, in which the entrepreneur joked about his possible interference in the US elections. Zelensky replied that he did not know how seriously Musk takes his own jokes, but his position on the Russian-Ukrainian war causes disagreement.
At the same time, the president emphasized that Ukraine is grateful to SpaceX for providing satellite communications, which played an important role since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. But this help, according to him, does not mean Kyiv agrees with the views of the company's owner on the war and Russian losses.
Separately, Zelensky expressed concern about the concentration of power and financial influence in the hands of one person. He emphasized the importance of separation of powers, which should prevent excessive dependence of the state on individual political or economic figures.
In the president's opinion, a particular danger is the situation when an extremely wealthy person is able to influence not only US policy, but also the political choices of other countries. Zelensky cited examples of Musk's public statements about the future of Europe, the political leadership of Germany, and the government in Ukraine.
The head of state stressed that such statements cannot be considered simply as personal opinions, since they come from a person with significant financial resources and political influence. According to Zelensky, Musk is a citizen of another state and should not determine the political choices of Ukrainians or Europeans.
The president also emphasized that for a democratic society, even one's own wrong choice is better than a decision imposed from outside. He called Musk's influence on the political processes of other states a risk that should not be underestimated.
The statement came amid previous disputes between Ukraine and the owner of SpaceX over the use of the satellite systems Starlink and Starshield. As reported by "Kurs Ukrainy", at the end of October Musk accused the Ukrainian military of violating the terms of use of Starlink for strike operations. The presidential advisor on defense technologies, Serhiy Bezkrestnov, denied these accusations, pointing to technical limitations of the system's operation.
Earlier, in an interview with PBS News, Zelensky said that he "really wanted" to talk to Musk "about various issues." In particular, he had this desire after the latest restrictions on Starlink, but, as the president of Ukraine noted, "they did not get in touch with us."
Despite disagreements, in the ZDF interview Zelensky did not announce the termination of Ukraine's cooperation with SpaceX. His criticism related primarily to Musk's political views and the ability to influence decisions of other states thanks to financial resources and social position.
Materials: ZDF, ZDF Presseportal, PBS News
