Two senior Democratic senators are asking the Pentagon and law enforcement to investigate reports that billionaire Elon Musk "had multiple calls with Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin," for national security reasons, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

Musk, who was appointed to a senior government post by Republican President-elect Donald Trump, oversees billions of dollars in defense and intelligence contracts as CEO of SpaceX.

Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, and Jack Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Defense Department inspector general that “Musk’s involvement in these SpaceX programs should be investigated for possible denial and exclusion from certain contracts and privileges” after reports in October of his conversations with Russian officials.

“These ties between a known adversary of the United States and Mr. Musk, a recipient of billions of dollars in U.S. government funding, raise serious questions about Mr. Musk’s credibility as a government contractor and privy to classified information,” they said in a joint letter dated Friday. Several Democratic lawmakers have publicly called for an investigation into Musk’s “contacts with Moscow” since The Wall Street Journal reported last month on the alleged contact, but the letter to U.S. officials who could order such an investigation has not been previously made public.

Shaheen and Reid’s call for a federal investigation is a long shot, as Trump prepares to return to the White House with the backing of Musk, who spent more than $119 million on Trump’s campaign and was named co-head of the new administration’s Department of Government Efficiency.

SpaceX, Musk and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Old contacts

Reports of Musk’s contact with Russian officials surfaced in 2022, when political expert Ian Bremmer, president of the consulting firm Eurasia Group, said Musk “told him he had spoken to Putin about the Ukraine war and Russia’s red line for using nuclear weapons.”

Musk denied Bremer's claim, saying he "talked to Putin 18 months ago, just about space."

Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed U.S., European and Russian officials, that Musk “had multiple conversations with Russian officials, including Putin and Sergei Kiriyenko, the first deputy chief of staff.”

Reed and Shaheen said in the letter that it was "deeply concerning" that Musk had conversations with Kiriyenko.

The U.S. Justice Department this year charged Kiriyenko and other Russian officials with running an AI-powered propaganda campaign on Musk's social media platform X and other sites to promote Russian interests and influence voters ahead of the U.S. presidential election.

Source: Alhurra Channel