Ukrainian ambassador tells Elon Musk to ‘f— off’ after billionaire’s Twitter ballot

WASHINGTON — American tech billionaire Elon Musk drew the general public ire of Ukraine’s prime officers Monday after the Tesla CEO tweeted what he claimed was the most certainly end result of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine.

“F— off is my very diplomatic reply to you,” Ukraine’s outgoing ambassador to Germany, Andrij Melnyk, wrote in response to Musk’s tweet. “The one end result is that now no Ukrainian will EVER purchase your f…ing tesla crap. So good luck to you.”

Musk posted a Twitter ballot gauging help for what he claimed was a possible end result of the seven-month battle. Particularly:

1. That the Ukrainian territory of Crimea, which Russia annexed by drive in 2014, be completely given to Russia and assured a everlasting water provide.
2. That the 4 areas of jap Ukraine the place Russia held sham referendums final month earlier than illegally annexing the land be put to new referendums, this time organized by the United Nations.
3. That Ukraine must be compelled to stay “impartial,” conducting the long-term Kremlin aim of barring Ukraine from becoming a member of the NATO defensive alliance.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded with a Twitter ballot of his personal.

“Which Elon Musk do you want extra?” Zelenskyy requested, giving two choices for a solution: “One who helps Ukraine” or “One who helps Russia.”

The sharp responses from Ukraine have been all of the extra notable as a result of Musk has earned quasi-folk-hero standing in Ukraine for the reason that begin of the battle.

Musk’s Starlink satellite tv for pc communication system has allowed Ukrainians and the Ukrainian army to bypass web outages which have plagued the nation.

But the remarks from Musk should not fully out of character for the political iconoclast and world’s richest man.

Whereas the enterprise pursuits of Tesla have historically aligned with the American political left, Musk has of late cultivated an antagonistic relationship with main Democratic political figures together with President Joe Biden, whose administration has boosted Ukraine by way of weapons packages and sanctions on Moscow.