Elon Musk was there when President-elect Donald Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and Trump handed the phone to Musk, Axios and the New York Times reported. The report said that the tone was positive, according to a person familiar with the discussion, who did not know the details of what the three discussed. Trump has not yet spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin, but Putin has said he will pick up if Trump calls.
Zelensky called Trump to congratulate him on winning the election, and Trump “didn’t leave Zelensky feeling disappointed,” according to reports. “Musk also weighed in during the call on continuing to support Ukraine through his Starlink,” the reports said. Elon Musk’s appearance on the president’s call shows the importance he receives. Musk was mar-a-lago on election night and even appeared in Trump’s family photo with his four-year-old son X.
When Trump told Zelensky he would not leave Ukraine
Zelensky met with Trump in New York in September and discussed possible diplomatic paths to ending the Russia-Ukraine war. During that meeting, Trump told Zelensky that he would not abandon Ukraine. “I promise you’ll be happy with me,” Trump told Zelensky, as reported by Axios.
A day after the call, Zelensky said in Budapest that Trump wanted to end the war quickly but emphasized that this was not discussed in detail during the call. “If it’s just fast, it means a loss for Ukraine. I still don’t understand how it can be any other way. Maybe we don’t know anything, don’t see,” Zelensky said.
An Axios report said Musk was also joined by Trump on the call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who told reporters that Musk and Trump were dining together at the time.