Tech billionaire Elon Musk warned of the possibility of World War III, saying a third global war could spark from either the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip or Russia's continuing assault on Ukraine.
"We need to figure out peace in Ukraine, and I think we need to restore normal relations with Russia," Musk said Monday during a talk on his social media platform X.
"World War III is a civilizational risk that we may not recover from," he said, "so we need to prioritize avoiding World War III; that's what actually matters. And not what happened in World War I and have a regional conflict rapidly become a global conflict."
The discussion was hosted by Silicon Valley entrepreneur David Sacks and also featured Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, whom Musk has indicated he may back.
Similar to his previous proposal to end the war in Ukraine — which would have potentially seen Russia annex large areas of territory held by Kyiv — the Tesla and SpaceX CEO also called for a cease-fire in Ukraine on Monday.
In the past, Ukrainian officials have rejected Musk's suggestions outright, with Ukrainian diplomat Andriy Melnyk responding to his proposal in no uncertain terms.
"F*** off is my very diplomatic reply to you @elonmusk," Melnyk said in October, 2022.
Musk has been largely supportive of the Ukrainian side of the conflict, making his Starlink satellite internet network available to Kyiv to enable much of its military. Last month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and two Democrat colleagues wrote to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin requesting clarity about Musk's role in preventing Ukraine from using Starlink terminals to mount an attack on Russian ships.
As Israel prepares for a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip following a surprise attack by Hamas earlier this month that killed more than 1,400 Israelis, Musk said that the alliance between Russia, China, and Iran could challenge the United States' economic power.
"We do not have an overwhelming advantage in industrial might," he said of the U.S. facing such an alliance. "The foundation of war is economic power, especially industrial output, basically how many tanks and guns and drones can you make, relative to the other side."
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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