Thread by @TheeThomasB

This is a good time to talk about @ElonMusk and Russia.

THREAD 🧵

Elon Musk received funding from sanctioned Russian oligarchs. A court document revealed that Musk's acquisition of Twitter, now rebranded as “X,” was funded in part by an investment fund of Russian oligarchs Petr Aven and Vadim Moshkovich.

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These Russians who gave money to Musk, Aven and Moshkovich, have strong ties to Vladimir Putin and have been subject to Western sanctions due to their associations with the Kremlin amid their war of aggression in Ukraine.

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It is illegal to engage in financial transactions with individuals or entities on the sanctions list, including sanctioned Russian oligarchs, without a license from the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

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This includes receiving investments or funding from Russian oligarchs. In the United States, the penalties for violating sanctions can be severe and include: Fines (up to $1 million or twice the value of the transaction + Criminal penalties (up to 20 years in prison)

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There may be exceptions or licenses available for certain transactions, and the specifics can be complex.

If Musk received funding from sanctioned Russian oligarchs without proper authorization, he will face regulatory issues and criminal prosecution.

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The Department of Justice does not publicly announce investigations/prosecutions. Elon Musk may have already received a Target Letter. He would not necessarily disclose such a thing. A grand jury’s proceedings are secret.

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In light of the DOJ’s recent indictment, it is clear the authorities are laser focused on Putin’s attempts to influence American politics. It is unlikely law enforcement would look past a social media site’s owner illegally taking money from Putin’s sanctioned oligarchs.

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Since receiving money from sanctioned Russian oligarchs, Musk has done an about-face on Donald Trump. Musk now unabashedly supports Trump. And he does so on Twitter, a violation of his earlier promise.

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Musk admitted he spoke to Vladimir Putin "more than once" about Ukraine.

Musk pushed Putin’s “peace deal” that involved Ukraine giving Crimea to Russia.

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Elon Musk has questioned American involvement in Ukraine’s self-defense efforts. He refused a check from the Pentagon, has proposed a pro-Russia plan to end the conflict, and has openly questioned Ukraine's strategy in the war.

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Here is Elon Musk promoting the Tennessee media company who was receiving millions of dollars from Putin to push Russian propaganda:

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On Twitter, Elon Musk posted an AI-generated image, that violates his own policy, depicting Kamala Harris as a communist (in a red uniform with hammer and sickle) and captioned the image with the false statement that “Kamala vows to be a communist dictator on day one.”

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Elon Musk has repeatedly boosted the accounts of MAGA posters Tim Pool and Benny Johnson, who the DOJ has now exposed as recipients of large sums of Russian money.

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Dimitri Simes is a Russian lobbyist; he runs a think tank that receives funding from Putin. In 2022, @ElonMusk spoke with Simes about his proposal to make Crimea part of Russia. Simes arranged a call between Musk and Kremlin officials.

Simes was just indicted.

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@elonmusk It is well established that Elon Musk lobbied Trump to choose @JDVance as his running mate.

JD Vance:

- called Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine a "border dispute"
- expressed skepticism about providing aid to Ukraine
- implied that Ukraine is corrupt

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@elonmusk @JDVance Here, Elon Musk uses the Putinista term "Khrushchev's mistake" (not assigning Crimea to Russia in the Soviet era). It shows how serious Musk is about spreading Moscow's propaganda:

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@elonmusk @JDVance There have been many other instances of Musk directly repeating or amplifying Russian propaganda, including:

- Saying Ukraine should give up Crimea to Russia

(cont.’d)

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@elonmusk @JDVance - Suggesting that the US was involved in a coup in Ukraine in 2014 (a claim also made by Russia)

- Sharing a misleading map of Ukraine that erased parts of the country (similar to Russian propaganda)

(cont.d)

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@elonmusk @JDVance - Proposing a peace plan that mirrored Russia's demands

- Questioning the official narrative of the MH17 crash (where Russians were found to be responsible)

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@elonmusk @JDVance Elon Musk admitted that he turned off Ukranian internet access (from his Starlink satellites) during Ukraine’s attempt to strike Putin’s naval fleet, directly aiding Russia in their war of aggression against Ukraine.

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