Putin calls Elon Musk a 'real genius' and says Russia is in close contact with SpaceX over satellites

Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised Elon Musk as a "real genius" and said the two are in close contact about satellite technology, remarks that came as he promoted Russia's own satellite internet project at the Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow. Speaking on Wednesday, Putin discussed Rassvet, Russia's project to provide internet connections to people from satellites. "He's a genius, a real genius," Putin said of Musk, according to a translation of his remarks by the BBC. "We are in close contact with our American partners, including Mr. Musk." SpaceX, the company behind Starlink, did not respond to a request for comment. Putin said it was important for Russia to remain in contact with Musk so that Rassvet and Starlink satellites do not "interfere with each other in orbit". "We and our American partners value this mutually, and despite all the political questions, we are working hard," he said. The gap in scale between the two networks is wide. Starlink has launched roughly 13,000 satellites, according to the company, while only a couple of dozen Rassvet satellites are currently in orbit, according to online satellite trackers. The Russian Embassy in South Africa said on Wednesday that Rassvet is "Russia's Starlink alternative" and "marks only the country's first steps in this field". "Russia maintains close contacts with the US on space, including with Elon Musk," the embassy wrote. Putin's comments came as the US and Russia appear to be growing closer, even as it approaches five years since Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine relied on Starlink internet in its efforts to keep Russia's forces at bay, but its military last week suddenly suffered Starlink connectivity problems, something Musk has admitted SpaceX did intentionally. The warming tone follows a series of recent moves. US President Donald Trump said earlier this month that he had struck a deal with Russia to import diesel in an effort to lower gas prices that rose sharply because of the US war with Iran. He then waived certain sanctions against Russia that were set to take effect. Not long after, a US citizen was released from Russian custody, with US envoy Steve Witkoff referring to Putin as a "humanitarian". Musk was born in South Africa and later immigrated to Canada before settling in the US. His business ventures, including Tesla, SpaceX and Starlink, are based in America, with most operating out of California and Texas. The billionaire has been one of the biggest political allies and financiers of Trump and other Republican US politicians.