Putin praises Elon Musk as visionary: ‘Such people rarely appear in the human population’

Vladimir Putin has drawn a parallel between Elon Musk and a key figure in the Soviet space race, Sergei Korolev, praising the SpaceX founder as a visionary.

Speaking on Russia's space policy at a student meeting, Putin reportedly described Musk, a key adviser of President Donald Trump, as "absolutely crazy about Mars," according to state news agency TASS.

Putin reportedly invoked the legacy of Korolev, the engineer behind Yuri Gagarin's historic 1961 spaceflight, to highlight the rarity of people like Musk.

TASS quoted Putin as saying: "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 is not the first time the Russian president has commended Musk.

In 2023, days after a report that Musk refused to let Ukraine use Starlink internet to launch a surprise attack on Russian naval vessels in Crimea, Putin praised the entrepreneur as an “outstanding person” and businessman.

Musk reportedly refused as he did not want to be complicit in a “major” act of war. The refusal was heavily criticised by Ukrainian leaders.

Putin spoke about the success of SpaceX later that week.

“As far as private business and Elon Musk is concerned... he is undoubtedly an outstanding person,” he said.

“This must be recognized, and I think it is recognized all over the world.

“He (Musk) is an active and talented businessman and he is succeeding a lot, including with the support of the American state.”

Musk has recently drawn attention for his increasingly critical stance on Ukraine amidst the ongoing conflict with Russia.

When Russia invaded in 2022, Musk was seen as one of Ukraine’s key allies, but he has since used his social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to criticize the country’s president Volodymyr Zelensky and amplify misinformation.

In March, after X was targeted by a cyber attack, Musk blamed Ukraine. He then accused a US Democrat senator who visited Kyiv in a show of support of being “a traitor.”

He has questioned the purpose of targeted American aid to Ukraine, scoffed at Zelensky’s pleas for more support, and called for elections to replace him.