First posted on Instagram
Elon Musk took aim at Ukraine’s leadership on Friday, accusing the country’s elites of growing rich from the war while ordinary Ukrainians pay the human price. “What’s actually going on in Ukraine is that there is a massive incentive difference between the elites and the people,” Musk wrote on X. “The former have grown very rich off the hundreds of billions flowing to Ukraine, while the latter’s children are conscripted to die in trenches.”
In a follow-up reply posted minutes later, Musk accused some American politicians of having a financial motive for backing Ukraine aid. “And some of that US taxpayer money comes back through multiple laundry machines to fund political campaigns in America, which is why you see some politicians caring more about Ukraine than America!” he wrote.
Musk’s remarks land as Western governments continue debating billions of dollars in military and financial assistance to Kyiv. His criticism raises the question of who is truly paying the price for the war: supporters of further aid argue it is necessary for Ukraine’s defense, while critics want stronger accountability and a clearer path toward ending the conflict. Musk’s comments also fuel calls for President Volodymyr Zelensky to negotiate an agreement rather than rely on continued funding from the United States and Europe.
Musk has been an outspoken critic of American spending on Ukraine’s war effort. His comments come amid a separate dispute over the satellite service Ukrainian forces rely on: the Wall Street Journal reported this week that Musk ordered restrictions on Ukraine’s access to the military-grade Starshield system, President Trump said he had called Musk and asked him to lift them, and Ukrainian officials said on Friday that the restrictions were still in place.