Nov 16, 2024 09:49 AM IST
Two Democratic US senators called for an investigation into Elon Musk’s involvement in contracts between the US government and his company SpaceX
Two democratic US senators called for an investigation into Elon Musk’s involvement in contracts between the US government and his company SpaceX, citing national security concerns raised by his reported contact with President Vladimir Putin, reported Bloomberg.
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In a letter, senators Jack Reed of Rhode Island and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, asked the departments of defense and justice on Friday to probe whether the alleged communications “should force a review of Musk’s continued involvement in SpaceX’s contracts” with the government.
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The letter said, “These relationships between a well-known US adversary and Mr. Musk, a beneficiary of billions of dollars in US government funding, pose serious questions regarding Mr. Musk’s reliability as a government contractor and a clearance holder.”
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“Communications between Russian government officials and any individual with a security clearance have the potential to put our security at risk,” they added.
Musk and SpaceX didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg’s request for comment. However, on X Musk wrote: “I’m going to find out who’s making these accusations and nuke them.”
The letter also cited a Wall Street Journal report last month that Musk had been in contact with Putin and other Russian official such as deputy chief of staff Sergei Kiriyenko since 2022.
Kiriyenko has been accused of being the mastermind behind Moscow’s efforts to influence the 2024 presidential campaign.
In the letter, the senators described SpaceX as “deeply integrated into our defense and intelligence space programming.” The US has maintained multiple contracts with SpaceX on satellite launches and through his Starlink satellite-based internet service, which have been crucial for Ukraine in its war against Russia.
According to the senators, the company holds more than $700 million in contracts for Space Force’s National Security Space Launch program, is building an exclusive satellite network for Space Force through its Starshield unit and has a $1.8 billion classified contract with the National Reconnaissance Agency.
“While commercial integration in space is key to our ability to innovate, it relies on contractors to exhibit responsible behavior in dealing with some of our most sensitive capabilities,” they wrote.
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