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Agence France-Presse

Elon Musk took part in a phone call between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US president-elect Donald Trump after his election victory, a senior Ukrainian official said on Friday.
“I confirm it,” the presidency official who asked to remain anonymous said, saying that the claim in a report by US news site Axios about the call on Wednesday was accurate.
Musk, the world’s richest man, played a major role in the Republican’s campaign, spending over US$110 million of his personal fortune to help get him elected. Trump has said he aims to include Musk in some form of advisory role in his coming government.
His presence during an official call underlines his close ties to the next US president.
Another high-ranking Ukrainian source said that Musk was physically present with Trump during the call.
Musk “wasn’t on the line, Trump gave him the phone. They were there together somewhere”, the source said.

Zelensky “thanked him [Musk] for the Starlinks, they talked briefly”, the source said, referring to the satellite internet devices used by Ukrainian troops as they fight of a Russian invasion.
“But the main conversation was of course with Trump,” the source added, while saying he and Zelensky “didn’t really discuss anything substantial, it was just a greeting conversation”.
Zelensky earlier said that he and Trump shared an “excellent” call, where he congratulated the Republican on his “tremendous victory” and they agreed to “maintain close dialogue and advance our cooperation”.
He did not mention speaking to Musk.
Trump’s team declined to confirm the Tesla boss’s participation in the call, saying they would not discuss private conversations.
Axios reported, citing two sources, that the call lasted some 25 minutes and left Zelensky somewhat reassured by what he heard from Trump, without giving specifics.
Zelensky said after the call that “strong and unwavering US leadership” under Trump was “vital” for a “just peace”.

Trump has repeatedly boasted that he could end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours and criticised American aid to Kyiv in its fight against Russia.
Washington has been a key military backer of Ukraine and many in Ukraine are worried that Trump will not give the same level of support – or that he could back a peace settlement to Russia’s advantage.
On Thursday, Zelensky said it would be “unacceptable” for Europe to offer the Kremlin concessions to halt its invasion of Ukraine, after Moscow demanded the West enter direct talks on ending the war.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday hailed Trump as “courageous” for the way he handled himself following an assassination attempt at a rally in July, and said he was “ready” to hold discussions with him.


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Ukraine war

Elon Musk took part in Trump-Zelensky call, Ukraine official says

Elon Musk (centre) took part in a phone call between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) and US president-elect Donald Trump (right), a senior Ukrainian official confirms. Photos: AFP

A Ukrainian serviceman stands next to the antenna of the Starlink satellite-based broadband system in Bakhmut in February 2023. Photo: AFP

Elon Musk (right) speaks as Donald Trump looks on during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in October. Photo: Reuters

US allows contractors to fix Pentagon-supplied weapons in Ukraine, in major shift

Ukrainian soldiers reload containers for a launcher during a training course on the Patriot air defence system at a German base. Photo: dpa

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to the media in a front of an F-16 aircraft at an undisclosed location in Ukraine in August. Photo: Reuters

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) and Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump shake hands during their meeting at Trump Tower in New York in September. Photo: Ukraine Presidential Press Service via EPA-EFE

Zelensky, Putin vie for edge with Trump ahead of Ukraine pivot

A photo made available by the press service of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’s 24th Mechanized Brigade November 1, 2024 shows servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade. Photo: EPA-EFE

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

Russian soldiers at an undisclosed location in Ukraine. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry Press Service via AP

A self-propelled artillery howitzer fires towards Russian positions in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine. Photo: AP

Tracers and searchlights in Kyiv, Ukraine, a during a Russian drone attack. Photo: Reuters

Chinese stocks associated with Tesla jump after Trump’s election win

Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks alongside Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on October 5, 2024. Photo: AFP

China-made Tesla Model 3s are seen at its factory in Shanghai on January 7, 2020. Photo: Reuters

Argentina’s President Milei to meet Trump and Musk next week in the US

Argentine President Javier Milei is expected to meet Donald Trump and Elon Musk next week in the US. Photo: Reuters 

Tesla CEO Elon Musk (right) on stage as he joins Donald Trump during a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in October. Photo: AFP

Brazilian far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Photo: EPA-EFE

News

World

Russia & Central Asia

The world’s richest man, a major backer of the US president-elect, was physically present and was handed the phone by Trump, an insider says


The world’s richest man, a major backer of the US president-elect, was physically present and was handed the phone by Trump, an insider says.
