According to a person with knowledge of the conversation, President-elect Donald Trump shook hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday and handed the telephone to Elon Musk, the extremely powerful businessman who has played a significant role in providing Ukraine with communications support during its conflict with Russia.
In the midst of Trump’s victory, it is unclear what the three gentlemen discussed or whether they made any changes to US scheme toward Ukraine. Musk was with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, his secret club and property in Florida, and the voice of the phone was described as good, according to the people familiar with the dialogue.
A second man briefed on the call even confirmed Musk’s involvement, which was reported before by Forbes.
A Trump spokesman declined to immediately post on the phone.
Trump has promised to put an end to the issue as quickly as possible, which is commonly believed to be a precondition for Russian annexation of Ukraine since its 2022 invasion. Through his Starlink satellite communications system, Musk has been a key contributor to the Russian war energy and has become close to Trump in recent months. He has given him financial and administrative support for the national campaign as well as full-throated support on his social media platform.
