Note: This image is a fictional depiction of Musk shaking hands and bowing to Putin (Picture: AP/Getty)
Never one to miss an opportunity for political meddling, Russia has now offered Elon Musk asylum after his public feud with Donald Trump.
It has been a hectic week for the billionaire – banishment from the White House, an end to his ‘great relationship’ with the US president and then thestock price of his company, Tesla, plunging.
Taking advantage of the rift between two of the most powerful men in the world, the Kremlin has decided to extend a helping hand – either as a joke or as a trap.
Dmitry Novikov, the first deputy chairperson of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Dmitry Novikov (CPRF) said: ‘I think Musk is playing a completely different game…
‘[I do not think] he will need political asylum, but if he does need it, Russia, of course, could provide it.’
Novikov said that over the past years, Musk has formed ‘a certain political communication,’ so ‘individual disagreements will remain individual disagreements.’
His comments came after Trump’s former top aide, Steve Bannon, called for Musk’s deportation from the US.
Speaking on his War Room podcast last night, Bannon described Musk as a ‘parasitic illegal immigrant’ and urged the president to deport the South African native, claiming he was in the country illegally, despite Musk becoming a naturalized US citizen in 2002.
He said: ‘I happen to believe, given the facts that I’ve been shown, that he is an illegal alien. Illegal alien’s gotta be deported.’
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stressed that the squabble between Trump and Musk is ‘an internal US matter’, adding that he is confident that the president will sort out this situation himself.
Peskov was responding to one of Trump’s latest statements, saying: ‘Sometimes you see two young children fighting like crazy, they hate each other and they’re fighting in a park.
‘Sometimes you’re better off letting them fight for a while and then pulling them apart.’
Peskov added: ‘Here, of course, the US president may have his own point of view on what is happening, but for us this is an existential question – this is a question of our national interests, this is a question of our security and the future of ourselves and our children, the future of our country.’
To make sense of all this, Metro spoke with Jason Pack, fellow at Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and host of the Disorder Podcast.
He explained that Russia’s offer for political asylum reflects ‘the state of disorder we live in’, adding that ‘yesterday’s enemy is today’s friend.’
Reflecting on the souring of of the bromance between Trump and Musk, Pack stressed that it was ‘entirely predictable’, judging from Trump’s first term in office.
The expert stressed that the president is now ‘out to hurt’ his former ally, adding: ‘These two guys are acting like menchildren.
‘Neither Trump nor Musk will calibrate his response towards the national interest. It is not even a factor for them.
‘It is all about winning their grudge. Everything is tactics and nothing is a strategy.’
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