In a letter sent Friday, Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said Musk’s reported relations with a U.S. adversary “pose serious questions” about his “reliability as a government contract and a clearance holder.”
Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX, holds contracts with the Department of Defense and the U.S. Intelligence Community worth billions of dollars.
He is also a “prime contractor” for the Space Force’s National Security Space program and holds a $1.8 billion classified contract with the National Reconnaissance Agency, the lawmakers noted.
The tech entrepreneur has reportedly claimed he holds a U.S. security clearance as part of these federal agreements. It comes weeks after The Wall Street Journal reported Musk has been in regular contact with Putin since late 2022.
The two reportedly discussed personal matters, business and geopolitical tensions, while sometimes involving other high-ranking Russian officials, including Putin’s first deputy chief of staff, Sergei Kiriyenko.
“Space equipment is at the crux of the communications that underpin our most sensitive military and intelligence operations. Russia’s ambitions in the space domain pose a direct threat to U.S. national security,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Communications between Russian government officials and any individual with a security clearance have the potential to put our security at risk. That is why there exists a strict reporting regime for any such foreign contacts.”
The senators pointed to the Pentagon’s assertion last May that Moscow launched an antisatellite weapon into space. Russia’s Ministry of Defense acknowledged a launch took place and included a spacecraft but called the U.S.’s assertions “fake news” at the time.
The lawmakers asked the DOJ and Pentagon to review whether Musk’s relations with Russian officials warrants an investigation and called on the Defense Department to determine whether SpaceX should exclude Musk’s involvement in current or future government contracts.
The letter comes just days after President-elect Trump tapped Musk and tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to head up a “Department of Government Efficiency,” which is expected to produce a report on slashing government costs and restructuring federal agencies.
In his leadership of the advisory panel, Musk could be working with the very agencies that hold contracts with SpaceX and electric vehicle company Tesla. Ethics experts have suggested his dual roles could present conflicts of interest.
Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.
