He weighed in on the China-Taiwan issue recently in an interview with the Financial Times and advocated increased Chinese control of the island.
Pointing to an inevitable conflict over Taiwan and how it would impact the global economy, Musk told FT: “My recommendation … would be to figure out a special administrative zone for Taiwan that is reasonably palatable, probably won’t make everyone happy. And it’s possible, and I think probably, in fact, that they could have an arrangement that’s more lenient than Hong Kong.”
Taiwan’s de-facto ambassador to the U.S., Hsiao Bi-khim, came down heavily on Musk’s solution to the cross-strait conflict, saying: “Taiwan sells many products, but our freedom and democracy are not for sale. Any lasting proposal for our future must be determined peacefully, free from coercion, and respectful of the democratic wishes of the people of Taiwan.”
The billionaire’s comment received praise from China’s ambassador to the U.S., Qin Gang, who said: “One country, two systems is part of China’s basic principles for resolving the Taiwan question.”
To many, the remarks of the world’s richest man are not separate from his big business interests in the Asian country. Tesla runs a factory in Shanghai that is reported to have accounted for half the global deliveries of the company this past year.
This was not the first time that Musk’s remarks have caused displeasure. Earlier this month, he held a Twitter poll on his four-point proposal to end the war in Ukraine which included permanently ceding Crimea to Russia and a “neutral” Ukraine.
The billionaire’s Ukraine peace plan was met with a strong response by the outgoing Ukrainian ambassador to Germany Andrij Melnyk who told Musk to “f**k off,” saying that it was still a diplomatic reply.
“The only outcome is that now no Ukrainian will EVER buy your f…ing tesla crap. So good luck to you,” he added.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said in a tweet: “Those who propose Ukraine to give up on its people and land — presumably not to hurt Putin’s bruised ego or to save Ukraine from suffering — must stop using word “peace” as an euphemism to “let Russians murder and rape thousands more innocent Ukrainians, and grab more land.””
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy joined the feud and set up a counter poll on Twitter asking which Musk was liked more—the one who supported Ukraine, or the one who supported Russia.
The episode has caused some commotion outside the diplomatic community as well. Investor Michael Burry, who is portrayed in the 2015 film The Big Short, expressed his bewilderment over Musk’s opinion, writing: “I don’t get it. We just saw what happened in Hong Kong.”
In a similar criticism, responding to Musk’s Ukraine peace plan, Russian chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov said: “This is moral idiocy, repetition of Kremlin propaganda, a betrayal of Ukrainian courage & sacrifice.”
The electric car manufacturer’s hot takes have invited controversy twice within a week’s time, while he maintains his proposals call for peace and speedy resolution of conflicts.
Produced in association with Benzinga.
(Additional reporting provided by Hamraz Ahmad).
This story was provided to Newsweek by Zenger News.
