Elon Musk is alone against all.
The world's richest man has been the target of criticism since October 4 in Western democracies, which are united in their condemnation of Russia following its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
The war that has since followed has been unanimously criticized by NATO, which has provided crucial military and logistical aid to Kyiv since the start of the conflict.
For the countries of the West, to end the war, which has already caused thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions of others, Russia, the aggressor, must withdraw from Ukraine.
'Dumb'
But Musk has just disrupted that consensus by proposing a peace plan perceived as pro-Russian. The CEO of Tesla proposed that Ukraine recognize that its region of Crimea, annexed in 2014 by Russia, is Russian territory and that Kyiv renounce its plans to become a member of NATO and the European Union.
Unsurprisingly, the plan was massively rejected by the Ukrainian authorities and the Ukrainians who see it as a request to capitulate. This is also the opinion in political circles in the West.
"Suggesting we end the Russian invasion by simply giving Russia parts of Ukraine - after all the suffering - is dumb," lambasted US senator Lindsey Graham on Twitter on October 5. "It is also an affront to the bravery of the Ukrainians fighting to defend their homeland."
After this intense criticism, Graham gave a lesson in history and diplomacy to Musk.
"It was an agreement signed by Russia that included protecting Crimea and the Donbas as part of Ukraine. If you want peace in Ukraine — which we ALL do — simply demand Russian honor the boundaries they agreed to in 1994 and withdraw their forces," Graham added.
He continued: "To do otherwise is to legitimize a bait and switch by Russia and a signal to other bad actors to take what you want - by force! If Elon Musk and others want the world to continue to be in chaos, then by all means capitulate to Putin and reward his aggression."
Musk Responds
But the billionaire is not one of the CEOs who do not respond to attacks. The Musk brand is based on singularity and attacking regardless of the strength and power of the opponent. Musk strikes blow for blow and he has just proven it again by answering Graham point by point.
"Assuming you believe that the will of the people matters, we should, in any given conflict region, support the will of those who live there," the tycoon responded. "Most of Ukraine unequivocally wants to be part of Ukraine, but some eastern portions have Russian majorities and prefer Russia."
He then accompanied his remarks with an electoral map of Ukraine from 2012 - before the annexation of Crimea by Russia - whose aim was to show that there are regions of the country which are pro-Russian.
"Obviously, not everyone who voted for the pro-Russia party wanted to join Russia, but it would also be inaccurate to say that none did," the billionaire added.
World War III
This post caused supporters of Ukraine and Russia to accuse each other of bad behavior since 2012. To which Musk replied: "There are no angels in war."
But all these explanations do not calm the critics who continue to corner him.
"The @elonmusk situation is clearly getting out of hand, and it seems like pride and vanity play a behemoth role in his attempt to pose as an expert on #Ukraine. Just stop, Elon. It's ok to admit that you overdid smth. Just stop," asked the Kyiv Post, which describes itself as the top international source of English-language news about Ukraine since 1995.
This last message led Musk to explain that his position was motivated by the fear of a world war, a fear which he had already exposed the day before by saying that the Russia-Ukraine conflict could escalate into an all-out war with enormous consequences not only for Ukraine but also for the world.
"I’m a big fan of Ukraine, but not of WW3," Musk said on Oct. 6.
