Elon Musk Crashes Out When Asked About South Africa Starlink Deal

Source: The New Republic

Elon Musk Crashes Out When Asked About South Africa Starlink Deal

Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling
Tue, May 20, 2025 at 11:48 AM EDT·3 min read

Elon Musk is having a hard time explaining his cushy new Starlink contracts.

While speaking with Bloomberg at the Qatar Economic Forum Tuesday, the world’s richest man aggressively dodged a direct question about his space-based internet network’s reported deal with South Africa, which would circumvent the country’s post-apartheid laws.

After refusing to engage with the idea that there had been a conflict of interest between his work for the Trump administration and operating his multibillion-dollar international businesses, Musk pushed back against the question that foreign governments could be using deals with his companies in order to cozy up to the White House.

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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is planning to offer Musk a Starlink contract ahead of Ramphosa’s meeting with Donald Trump, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, despite the fact that Musk’s business doesn’t fit the parameters of South Africa’s Black Economic Empowerment laws.

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Read more: https://news.yahoo.com/news/finance/news/elon-musk-spirals-asked-making-154859876.html