Vladimir Putin Hails Elon Musk, Compares Him To Soviet Space Program Pioneer: 'Such People Rarely Appear In The Human Population'

Russian President Vladimir Putin lauded SpaceX and Tesla TSLA CEO Elon Musk, drawing a comparison between him and Sergei Korolev, the architect of the Soviet Union’s space victories in the mid-20th century.

What Happened: Putin praised Musk while discussing Russia’s space policy with students. He drew an analogy between Musk and Sergei Korolev, the chief engineer behind the Soviet Union’s first manned spaceflight in 1961, reported Reuters.

Putin was quoted by TASS, the state news agency, as saying, “You know, there’s a person who lives in the States, you could say that he’s absolutely crazy about Mars.” He went on to add, “Such people rarely appear in the human population, charged with a certain idea. Even though it may seem incredible to me today, after a time such ideas are often realized.”

This isn’t the first instance of Putin expressing admiration for Musk, the founder of space technology firm SpaceX. He has previously referred to Musk as “an outstanding person.”

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Why It Matters: Notably, as per a Wall Street Journal report in October, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson expressed concern over reports of suspected conversations between Elon Musk and Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating, “If the story is true… then I think that would be concerning, particularly for NASA, for the Department of Defense, for some of the intelligence agencies." SpaceX, which holds numerous high-value government contracts, is the main rocket launch partner for both NASA and the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, Musk, a key advisor to U.S. President Donald Trump, has become more vocal in his criticism of Ukraine, which has been in conflict with Russia since 2022.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.