'If Vladimir Putin backed off, he would be assassinated': Elon Musk on Russia-Ukraine War

There is no way in hell that Russian President Vladimir Putin could lose the war against Ukraine, which began two years ago, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said.

Speaking with US Republican Senators on Monday at a forum on 'X Spaces', which is part of his social media platform X, Musk claimed that there was pressure on Putin to continue the war. “If he (Putin) were to back off, he would be assassinated,” Bloomberg quoted Musk as saying.

This comes as Ukraine accused the Russian forces of using internet access services provided by Elon Musk-owned Starlink satellites on the frontlines. The claims have been denied by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who stated that the terminals were not certified for use in Russia.

During the event, discussions were held on the Senate bill that would provide further assistance to Ukraine to continue battling the full-scale Russian invasion.

Musk was joined by Senators Ron Johnson, JD Vance, and Mike Lee. Among others present were Vivek Ramaswamy, a former Republican presidential candidate, and David Sacks, who is co-founder of Craft Ventures LLC.

Musk made the comments while agreeing with Johnson, who noted that the Russian President would not lose in Ukraine.

Those expecting Ukraine to win the war against Russia were “living in a fantasy world,” Johnson stated.

“We gotta kill this thing,” Vance said while talking about the Senate Bill, which includes $60 billion in assistance for Ukraine, besides funding for Israel, Taiwan, and humanitarian aid for Gaza, the report stated.

Musk further hoped Americans would contact their elected representatives about the Ukraine bill. “This spending does not help Ukraine. Prolonging the war does not help Ukraine,” he added.

This was not the first time Musk doubted Ukraine's ability to defeat Putin while also mocking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s requests for aid.

While speaking with the senators, Musk also noted that often he is accused of being a Putin apologist. However, the accusation was “absurd,” he stated, adding that his companies “have probably done more to undermine Russia than anything.”

Musk noted that his interest is in stopping the casualties on both sides, adding that he doubted the wisdom of seeking President Putin’s ouster.

“For those who want regime change in Russia, they should think about who is the person that could take out Putin, and if that person is likely to be a peacenik. Probably not,” he said.