WASHINGTON (Reuters), Elon Musk, a billionaire, suggested that the solution to tensions between China, Taiwan, and Russia could be to hand over control of Taiwan to Beijing, just days after he proposed a deal to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
“My recommendation is. . . “It would be to create a special administrative area for Taiwan that is reasonable palatable, probably won’t make everybody happy,” said the world’s wealthiest person in an interview with the Financial Times published Friday.
Musk answered a question regarding China. His Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), electric car company, operates a large factory at Shanghai.
Beijing claims Taiwan, democratically ruled, is one of its provinces. It has long promised Taiwan its control, and has not ruled the possibility of using force to do this. The Taiwanese government strongly opposes China’s claims to sovereignty and states that only the 23 million inhabitants of Taiwan can decide its fate.
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Musk was quoted by the newspaper as saying, “And it’s possible, I think probably in fact that they could have an agreement that’s more lenient that Hong Kong.”
China offered Taiwan a model of autonomy that was “one country, two system” similar to Hong Kong’s, but it has been rejected by all major political parties in Taiwan. This is especially after Beijing instilled a strict National Security Law in the City in 2020.
The Foreign Ministry of Taiwan declined to comment on Musk’s comments.
Wang Ting-yu is a senior lawmaker from Taiwan’s Democratic Progressive Party and sits on the foreign affairs committee of parliament. He also criticizes Musk on his Facebook page (NASDAQ: META).
Wang stated that “individual independent companies cannot take their own ownership as a joke.” Wang said, “So why should they casually give up the democratic freedoms and sovereignty of 23 million Taiwanese?” It is unacceptable for Ukraine and Taiwan won’t permit it.
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According to Reuters, a senior Taiwanese official who is familiar with security planning in the area told Reuters that Musk must find a strong political advisor.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk to the media. Beijing’s totalitarian rule has abruptly ended Hong Kong’s social and economic vibrancy.
About half of Tesla’s worldwide deliveries in 2013 came from Shanghai, according to the company. Musk stated that China had sought assurances from him that he would not offer Starlink internet services to his SpaceX rocket company.
Musk stated that he believed conflict over Taiwan was inevitable, and warned about its potential impact not only on Tesla but also on iPhone maker Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) as well as the wider economy. These remarks were not discussed in the interview.
Related: Elon Musk hopes to have self-driving Teslas available in the U.S. by the end of the year.
Musk suggested earlier this week that Ukraine cede Crimea permanently to Russia and that new referendums be held in the U.N. to decide the fate of Russian-controlled territory. And that Ukraine accept neutrality.
He invited Twitter users to weigh-in on his plan. This drew sharp criticism from Volodymyr Zelenskiy (Ukraine President), who suggested his own Twitter poll: “Which #elonmusk do YOU prefer more?” One who supports Ukraine (or one who supports Russia).
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