Elon Musk suggested he might die “under mysterious circumstances” in a cryptic tweet that appeared to be referring to a threat by the chief of Russia’s space agency.
“If I die under mysterious circumstances, it’s been nice knowin ya,” Musk said in the tweet Sunday night.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO posted the ominous tweet shortly after he shared a message from Dmitry Rogozin, who accused him of being “involved in supplying the fascist forces in Ukraine with military communication equipment.”
“And for this, Elon, you will be held accountable like an adult – no matter how much you’ll play the fool,” added the former deputy Russian prime minister who now heads the country’s space agency.
In February, Musk provided SpaceX Starlink terminals to Ukraine at the request of top government officials who worried that the country would lose internet access due to Russian attacks. The terminals receive internet from SpaceX’s 2,000 satellites, allowing users to get online even if their service has been disconnected.
Rogozin blasted Starlink on Sunday for enabling the “Nazi Azov Battalion” to access the internet, Fox News reported.
“If I die under mysterious circumstances, it’s been nice knowin ya,” Elon Musk tweeted.Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Dmitry Rogozin accused Elon Musk of being “involved in supplying the fascist forces in Ukraine with military communication equipment.”Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images
“From the testimony of the captured commander of the 35th Marine Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Colonel Dmitry Kormyankov, it turns out that the internet terminals of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite company were delivered to the militants of the Nazi Azov Battalion and the Ukrainian Marines in Mariupol by military helicopters,” Rogozin wrote, according to a translation Musk shared.
“According to our information, the delivery of the Starlink equipment was carried out by the Pentagon,” Rogozin wrote. “Elon Musk, thus, is involved in supplying the fascist forces in Ukraine with military communication equipment.”
Musk wrote that the “word ‘Nazi’ doesn’t mean what he seems to think it does.”
In February, Musk provided SpaceX Starlink terminals to Ukraine at the request of top government officials who worried that the country would lose internet access due to Russian attacks.SpaceX
In February, Elon Musk provided SpaceX Starlink terminals to Ukraine.Patrick T. Fallon/REUTERS
Russia has repeatedly cited the Azov Battalion — a national guard unit based in Mariupol — as justification for its invasion of Ukraine in a “denazification” effort.
In 2015, unit spokesman Andriy Diachenko told USA Today that up to 20 percent of its members are Nazis, but that the ideology “has nothing to do with the official ideology of the Azov.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, has strongly denied the claim that the battalion fosters Nazism.
“The Azov Regiment is not a volunteer (formation), but part of the National Guard,” he said last week, Fox News reported.
“They are (part of) the official army of our state. Anyone who wanted to get involved in politics (left the Azov Regiment). Those who decided to serve in the National Guard of Ukraine became part of the National Guard of Ukraine,” the president added.
Musk’s tweet prompted his mother, Maye Musk, to respond: “That’s not funny.”
Elon & his ventures are the reason I wake up every morning filled with hope, optimism, joy, & excitement that humanity has a better future with Elon around. I’m sure I’m not the only one to wake up with that optimism. Take care, Elon. Stay safe. The world needs you. @elonmusk
— Pranay Pathole (@PPathole) May 9, 2022
“Sorry! I will do my best to stay alive,” her son assured her.
Some Twitter users drew comparisons between Musk’s tweet and those by anti-virus software entrepreneur John McAfee, who died in a Spanish jail in 2021.
Authorities determine that the eccentric antivirus software creator hanged himself in the Barcelona lockup — though in 2020, he said he had no intentions of committing suicide after he was arrested on tax evasion charges.
“I am content in here. I have friends. The food is good. All is well. Know that if I hang myself, a la Epstein, it will be no fault of mine,” he tweeted.
On Sunday, Musk liked a tweet by Pranay Pathole, an Indian engineer who appeared to express concern for his safety.
“Elon & his ventures are the reason I wake up every morning filled with hope, optimism, joy, & excitement that humanity has a better future with Elon around,” Pathole wrote. “I’m sure I’m not the only one to wake up with that optimism.
He added: “Take care, Elon. Stay safe. The world needs you.”
Musk last month secured a deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion.
