Ukraine enraged by Elon Musk's poll tweet on the Russian invasion: 'f--- off'
Elon Musk argued that the will of the people in the annexed regions should ultimately be the determining factor
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Tesla CEO Elon Musk lit a firestorm Monday morning with a tweet suggesting that Ukraine should give up some of its territories and hold new elections in regions Russia has annexed.
Musk tweeted out a poll, asking respondents to weigh in on a series of proposals to obtain Ukraine-Russia peace: redo elections of annexed regions under UN supervision and Russia leaves if that is the will of the people, Crimea remains part of Russia, water supply to Crimea is assured, and Ukraine remains neutral.
More than 63% of respondents voted no, while the remaining respondents voted yes.
Musk said such a scenario was "highly likely" to be the outcome of the Russia-Ukraine War, noting it was "just a question of how many die before then." He also argued that nuclear war was "a possible, albeit unlikely, outcome" of the conflict.
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The series of tweets evidently didn’t sit well with Ukrainians.
"Did I miss the point when Elon Musk proclaimed himself a diplomacy expert?" Ukrainian journalist Anastasiia Lapatina tweeted.
"F--- off is my very diplomatic reply," tweeted Ukrainian diplomat Andrij Melnyk.
"It’s not just about territory, Elon! It’s about people! It’s about genocide of Ukrainian language, culture! What is peace for you is a destroyed, cripple life for them," tweeted former Ukrainian ambassador to Austria, Olexander Scherba. "It’s about allowing a new Hitler to have his way! Can’t believe you wrote that!"
Even Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky weighed in on the controversy, asking his followers which Elon Musk they like more: the one who "supports Ukraine" or the one who "supports Russia." An overwhelming 85% voted for the former option.
FILE: Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Armin Laschet, CDU Federal Chairman and Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, talk during a tour of the plant of the future foundry of the Tesla Gigafactory on August 13, 2021, in Grünheide near Berlin, Germany. (Patrick Pleul - Pool/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The backlash illustrates a dramatic change of public opinion from earlier this year when at the outset of the war, Musk’s SpaceX shipped thousands of Starlink satellite internet kits to Ukraine, helping them to stay connected while battling Russia.
In a series of follow-up tweets, Musk reframed his earlier questions writing: "Let’s try this then: the will of the people who live in the Donbas & Crimea should decide whether they’re part of Russia or Ukraine." Nearly 55% of respondents voted yes, while more than 45% voted no.
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"Russia is doing partial mobilization. They go to full war mobilization if Crimea is at risk. Death on both sides will be devastating," Musk wrote. "Russia has more than three times the population of Ukraine, so victory for Ukraine is unlikely in total war. If you care about the people of Ukraine, seek peace."