--- title: "Elon Musk Fans Horrified as He Suggests Ukraine Give in to Putin’s Demands" description: "In a brazen Twitter outpour, Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested that Ukraine should give up parts of its territories to reach peace with Russia." date: "2022-10-03" modified: "2022-10-03" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/elon-musk-fans-ukraine" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "Russia" - "ukraine" --- # Elon Musk Fans Horrified as He Suggests Ukraine Give in to Putin’s Demands ![In a brazen Twitter outpour, Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested that Ukraine should give up parts of its territories to reach peace with Russia.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* In an uncharacteristically brazen Twitter outpour, Tesla CEO Elon Musk suggested that Ukraine should give up parts of its territories and other rights to reach a peace agreement with Russia — or else risk a bloody end to the conflict, culminating in a full blown "[nuclear war]()." In short, [even for Musk](), it's exactly the kind of opinion absolutely nobody asked for. Even his most ardent supporters were taken aback. "Please snap out of it, E," [suggested]() SpaceX aerospace engineer Sid Chambers. "You are using \[P\]utin propaganda talking points," she [added](). "Fix this." Renata Konkoly, one of Musk's most outspoken boosters on Twitter, issued a [rare rebuke](). "You are assuming that I wish to be popular," Musk [snapped in reply](). "I don’t care. I do care that millions of people may die needlessly for an essentially identical outcome." Pseudonymous Dogecoin cocreator Shibetoshi Nakamoto, another noted Musk ally, weighed in with a [meme]() seemingly chastising Musk as well. Even Whole Mars Catalog, a Tesla superfan whose tweets Musk sometimes interacts with, [retweeted a message]() from a Ukrainian official pushing back against Musk's outburst. Musk kicked things off around midday today, when he [posted a poll]() calling for a Ukraine-Russia peace that would give numerous concessions to Russian president Vladimir Putin including water rights and some territory. He followed up with another [Twitter poll](), asking if the people of the Donbas and Crimea regions — both the sites of heavy military offensives in eastern Ukraine — "should decide whether they’re part of Russia or Ukraine." Surprising nobody, the polls generated quite some buzz, with Musk [accusing Twitter bots]() of swaying the vote. The timing couldn't have been worse, as the news comes after Russia attempted to ratify its advances in Ukraine with sham referendums, which weren't exactly [going to fool literally anybody](). Musk's solution: open elections "under UN supervision" — an unrealistic suggestion at best. And if Russia refused those supervised elections? "Then war it is," Musk [concluded](). The big question is why Musk decided to start burning bridges now. He had already accrued a significant amount of good will after [shipping thousands of Starlink internet satellite terminals]() to Ukraine, which have reportedly had a [significant impact](). Reactions from officials started to pour in as well, with Ukrainian diplomat Andriy Melnyk [telling]() the richest man in the world to "f\*\*\* off." "Which Elon Musk do you like more?" Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky [wrote in his own poll](), with the two options being "one who supports Ukraine" and "one who support Russia." **More on Elon Musk:** [*Elon Musk Is a Public Health Risk*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()