Musk’s war rules earn praise from a world leader
A Russian president calls a tech mogul a genius while the mogul dictates war rules via satellite internet.
The story
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Elon Musk as a 'genius' and mentioned close contact regarding Russia's satellite internet project, Rassvet, while Musk has previously restricted Starlink access in Ukraine due to alleged violations of terms of service.
Source: techcrunch.com
Our reading
Putin calls Musk a genius while Musk claims Ukraine violated terms of service for using Starlink in combat. The same man who controls a global satellite network can decide which country gets internet access based on whether it’s using the tech for ‘offensive drone strikes to kill people.’
It’s unclear if Putin is trying to get Musk to help Rassvet or if he’s just trying to avoid a full Starlink shutdown. Either way, the idea that a private company can dictate the rules of war through internet access is a strange kind of diplomacy.
Musk, the man who can turn off a nation’s military communications, is being called a genius by the man who controls a country. It’s like a war game where one player has the power to end the match and the other is just writing a thank-you note.
