It looks like Elon Musk has a new admirer.
According to a report by RIA News, the Kremlin applauded Tesla billionaire Musk for a controversial Twitter poll he posted earlier this week.
On Monday (October 3), SpaceX founder Musk asked people to vote 'yes' or 'no' to a list of conditions that he implied could bring about the end of the conflict in Ukraine.
Among the conditions Musk outlined was the proposition to "redo elections" in areas of Ukraine annexed by Russia, and to ensure Ukraine remains a neutral territory going forwards. The billionaire also wrote "Crimea formally part of Russia, as it has been since 1783 (until Khrushchev’s mistake)" and "Water supply to Crimea assured".
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov was reportedly a fan of Musk's ideas. According to RIA, he told reporters that the billionaire's poll was "positive".
Peskov went on to say that - unlike many professional diplomats - Musk was looking for a way to achieve peace in the region. He added that this was categorically not possible if Russia's conditions were not fulfilled.
While Russian officials may have enjoyed Musk's ideas, the same could not be said for Ukraine's leadership. The poll appeared to enrage many Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky, who took to his own Twitter account to hit back at the Tesla CEO.
Per Business Insider, Zelensky shared a poll of his own which asked users to decide: "Which @elonmusk do you like more?"
The two options provided were: "one who supports Ukraine" and "one who supports Russia."
In the wake of backlash against his poll, Musk once again took to Twitter to defend his position.
"I still very much support Ukraine, but am convinced that massive escalation of the war will cause great harm to Ukraine and possibly the world," the billionaire tweeted.
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