Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, the mind behind Tesla and SpaceX, is no stranger to controversy, as seen in his latest conflict with Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. With Musk’s influence extending beyond the business world, he often engages with global leaders on various political and social issues.
In recent years, Musk has found himself in disputes with several world leaders, often over his views on matters related to free speech, regulation, and governance.
Here’s a list of all the world leaders Musk has clashed with:
Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine
Elon Musk’s involvement in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, particularly his proposed peace plan and comments regarding Starlink, sparked significant controversy.
In October 2022, Musk suggested a four-step plan for peace, which included redoing elections in annexed regions, formally recognising Crimea as part of Russia, ensuring water supply to Crimea, and maintaining Ukraine’s neutrality. This plan was widely criticised, especially by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who viewed it as pro-Russia.
In September 2023, Musk addressed an excerpt from Walter Isaacson’s biography, revealing that SpaceX had received an emergency request to extend Starlink coverage to Sevastopol to aid in sinking the Russian fleet. Musk refused, arguing that it would make SpaceX complicit in escalating the war.
Musk further stirred the debate by posting a meme on X that mocked Zelensky for seeking financial aid. “When it’s been 5 minutes and you haven’t asked for a billion dollars in aid,” the caption of the meme posted by Musk read.
This meme was met with criticism from Ukrainian officials, including Parliamentary Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, who responded to Musk with: “The case when a dude @elonmusk tried to conquer space, but something went wrong and in 5 minutes he was up to his eyeballs in shit.”
Leo Varadkar, Prime Minister of Ireland
In November 2023, Elon Musk sparked controversy with his comments about Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, following significant civil unrest in Dublin. The unrest erupted after a stabbing incident involving three children and two adults, initially reported as being perpetrated by a non-Irish citizen, though it was later confirmed that the suspect was an Irish citizen originally from Algeria. The violence further led to widespread riots. At a press conference, Ireland’s police chief, Drew Harris, attributed the rioting to a “lunatic hooligan faction” influenced by far-right ideologies.
Musk claimed that Varadkar “hates the Irish people,” which many perceived as an inflammatory statement amid the turmoil.
Musk’s criticism of Varadkar centred on the Irish government’s plans to introduce stricter hate speech laws, which would enhance police powers to address harmful speech against protected groups such as foreign nationals, ethnic minorities, and the LGBTQ community. Musk, who has previously condemned the bill, described it as a severe threat to freedom of speech.
Although Musk did not explicitly address the immigration issue or the Dublin riots in his statements, the timing of his remarks—particularly given the ongoing social tensions—led to widespread criticism.
In an interview with Irish station RTE Radio 1, David Cullinane, a representative from the opposition party Sinn Féin, accused Musk of “inciting hatred and violence” through his comments.
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada
Musk has frequently criticised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government, particularly over broadcasting laws that require online platforms to register with Canadian authorities. In October 2023, Musk accused the Canadian government of “crushing free speech” in the country after they mandated formal registration of all online streaming services for “regulatory controls.”
During the Covid-19 lockdowns, Musk had also compared Trudeau to Adolf Hitler, in now-deleted tweets, for strict vaccine mandates.
Musk’s attacks on Trudeau have been both ideological and personal, including mocking the Canadian leader for past incidents, such as wearing “brownface.” In February of this year, Musk posted images of Trudeau in various cultural garments, with a sarcastic comment that read, “I can’t believe Gemini made these unfair pics of Truedough.” The post was meant to call out the Canadian Prime Minister for cultural appropriation.
Nicolás Maduro, President of Venezuela
Earlier this month, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro signed a decree blocking access to the social media platform X for 10 days. This action followed a public spat between Maduro and the platform’s owner, Elon Musk. Tensions between the two escalated after Maduro’s disputed presidential election victory earlier this year. Musk referred to Maduro as a “dictator” and a “clown,” while Maduro accused Musk of inciting “hatred, fascism, and civil war.”
In response to the election result, which sparked anti-government protests and led to the arrest of hundreds of people by Venezuelan security forces, Maduro alleged that the country’s National Electoral Council (CNE) had been the target of a “cyber coup” during the election. He accused Musk of staging an “attack” on his re-election bid and violating Venezuelan laws by inciting unrest.
In a televised speech, Maduro announced that X would be temporarily “withdrawn from circulation” by the state telecommunications agency, citing Musk’s actions as violations of both the platform’s rules and Venezuelan laws. Musk, on the other hand, had publicly supported the opposition before the election, condemning the election results.
Alexandre de Moraes, Brazilian Supreme Court Justice
The judge also froze the assets of Musk’s satellite internet company, Starlink, to cover unpaid fines amounting to 18.5 million reais ($3.28 million) imposed on X for non-compliance.
Musk responded by calling de Moraes a “dictator.”
First Published: Sep 02 2024 | 2:47 PM IST
