Elon Musk just declared war on Russia
On 24th February this year, President Vladimir Putin sent Russian Troops into Ukraine, igniting a conflict that many believe could spiral into Word War 3.On 4th March, ElonMuskLive posted a video entitled ‘Elon Musk just declared War on Russia with NATO partnership.’
What factors have led to Russia’s decision to invade Ukraine, why might that lead to world war 3, and why has the world’s richest man decided to step into the fray? Let’s consider all of these questions in order.
Missiles on the doorstep of our house
Speaking in the months leading up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Putin accused NATO of placing ‘missiles on the doorstep of his house.’ He was referring to the ongoing expansion of NATO since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
NATO is a military alliance of nations established at the start of the cold war, ostensibly as a safeguard against any possible attack from The Soviet Union. NATO members include America, Canada, and several European countries. Members of NATO go on the understanding that an attack on one of them is an attack on all of them.
When the Soviet Union began to break up in 1991, NATO had nineteen members. There are now thirty NATO members, and many of the member countries were formerly part of The Soviet Union. By increasing it’s membership, NATO has expanded geographically right up to the current borders of Russia. Every NATO country contains military bases and missile launch sites. Putin asserts that Russia has not placed missiles on the borders of Europe, Canada, or America, but NATO has placed missiles all along Russia’s border, and this is a threat.
Since the end of the Soviet Union, Ukraine had been undecided on whether to remain independent, or join sides; either with Russia, or with NATO. In 2013 Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych decided join Russia. A military coup was engineered by America, igniting what is now remembered as the ‘Revolution of Dignity.’ Since the military coup d’état there has been an ongoing conflict between Russian and Ukrainian forces.
Although Ukraine is not a member of NATO, it is effectively being treated as one, with NATO supplied weapons flooding the country, even before President Putin sent in the Russian military.
Elon Musk has warned America that if Russia is not stopped, there is a real danger that the Russia could launch nuclear weapons against North America.
World War 3?
CNN reported that President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for direct talks with President Vladimir Putin, and sees direct engagement as the only way to bring an end to the war in Ukraine. Zelensky said “Dialogue is the only way out. I think it’s just the two of us, me and Putin, who can make an agreement on this. If these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third world war.”
The Turkish government is trying to broker a peace agreement between Russian and Ukraine. Russia is asking that Ukraine remain a neutral state, neither affiliated with NATO or Russia, that the region be ‘de-nazified’, and that the international community recognise Russian’s annexation of Crimea. Ukraine has asked that Russian troops withdraw from Ukraine.
China has stated that it stands by Russia in opposing further NATO expansion and has refused to join the West in it’s sanctions against Russia. Iran also stands by Russia, with the nation’s Grand Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calling Ukraine a ‘victim of U.S. policy.’ Syria and Belarus also back Russia, though the majority of Belarussians are opposed to joining the war. Many of Russia’s offensives against Ukraine have been launched from Belarus. Along with Belarus; Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajistan are all members of the Collective Security Treaty Organisation, and would lend their military strength to Russia in the event of attacks. Venezuela is another Russian ally. The country has the largest oil reserves on earth but its economy has been crippled and hit with heavy sanctions by the U.S.
The 30 NATO members include North America, Canada and Germany. There are some heavy hittters with nuclear weapons. They all believe that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is unjustified.
Elon Musk is a citizen of both Canada, and America. He also has security clearance from the Pentagon, which means he has access to classified information about the United State’s military operations, and he must stand with North America. He agrees with NATO that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is unjustified, and has been taking increasing actions to assist Ukraine.
What can the world’s richest man do?
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine opens the door to a real possibility of the third world war, and the threat of a nuclear apocalypse. Russia has over six thousand nuclear weapons, and America has over five and a half thousand. China, which would likely partner with Russia, also has nuclear weapons, as do France and Britain, both members of NATO. The stakes don’t get any higher. In such a deadly situation, what can the world’s richest man do?
Before the conflict impacted stock markets around the world, Elon Musk had a fortune of over $200 billion. Nobody else on earth has that much financial clout. But Musk can offer much more than just financial assistance. He is the owner of some of the worlds most advanced technologies, and they can all be utilised for waging war.
When Russia knocked out Ukraine’s internet, Elon Musk delivered Starlink internet services to the country. Starlink internet is the only non Russian internet service now operating in Ukraine. As Starlink internet uses hundreds of satellites in low orbit around the world, it is far more difficult to disrupt than land based internet, and can be used on the move. Starlink allows rapid communication sharing between military units and has been critical in allowing the outnumbered Ukrainians to hold off Russian troops. Musk has updated Starlink so that it can be powered by a car’s cigarette lighter.
Musk has also offered free fast charging for all electric vehicles in Ukraine.Communication and transportation are essential in the war effort and Musk is assisting in both these areas.
SpaceX, Musk’s company which aims to colonise other planets, is developing rockets capable of carrying people to Mars (480 million miles away). The company’s rocket building technology is being shared with the United State’s military. SpaceX rockets could travel at speeds of twenty seven thousands miles per hour, and would be capable of delivering missiles from America to Russia in twenty minutes.
President Joe Biden has threatened to impose sanctions that would degrade Russia’s aerospace industry. Dimitry Rogozin, Director General of Roscosmos has responded by reminding the world that Russia controls the International Space Station’s orbit, intimating that Russia could cause the ISS to fall to earth somewhere over the USA or Europe. The ISS weighs 500 tons anan earth impact would cause enormous damage. Once again, Elon Musk has stepped up, by saying that SpaceX could step in to keep the ISS in orbit.
With over 70 million Twitter followers, Musk is one of the world’s biggest influencers. As a major provider of oil and gas, Russia can harm world economies by withholding these essential natural resources. Musk has stated on Twitter that oil and gas production outside Russia needs to be increased immediately, rendering Russia’s threats of withholding fuel far less damaging.
Musk’s super-weapons
Communication, transportation, rockets and influence all count, but in war, weapons matter the most. When push comes to shove, the most advanced weaponry is usually victorious. Technologies developed by Musk’s companies are helping the United States Military to develop super weapons.
Using the batteries developed for electric vehicles by Tesla, Lockheed Martins is developing lasers than can be mounted on US fighter jets.
Musk’s companies also own the most powerful rockets in existence, the Falcon 9 and the Falcon Heavy, which regularly travel to outer space. Musk’s jets have already sent equipment to orbit the earth for the American military. SpaceX technologies can also be used to power surveillance rockets, which could give Ukraine a reconnaissance advantage.
The US air force is working on hypersonic aircraft (aircraft which can travel faster than the speed of sound), and Musk’s technologies come into play here as well. Hypersonic aircraft and missiles travel at speeds of around three thousand miles per hour, meaning they could attack locations across continents within an hour.
Musk has also developed a stealth destroyer, which will make the U.S. navy especially formidable. The destroyer can eliminate aircraft, drones, and missiles using lasers. The lasers are powered once again by lithium ion batteries developed by Tesla.
Can Ukraine Win?
It is surprising that Ukraine has managed to hold off the Russians for so long, causing unexpected losses to the Russian military. The Ukrainians are hugely outnumbered by the Russian military. Their resistance so far has no doubt been helped by Elon Musk.
Can they win? Only time will tell. But with Elon Musk on their side, they have a much better chance.
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