Nicolas Maduro has accused Musk of being behind “attacks on Venezuela.”
Caracas:
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, whose claim to election victory is widely disputed, is no friend of billionaire Elon Musk, and the feeling is clearly mutual, with their war of words escalating amid the political crisis in Caracas.
Musk – who runs SpaceX and Tesla, and owns the social network X – is an ultra-capitalist who supports Donald Trump, which means he is everything the socialist Maduro despises.
But in recent days, the bus driver turned leader of oil-rich, cash-strapped Venezuela has Musk – whom he calls his “arch-enemy” – in his sights.
Maduro has accused Musk of being behind “attacks on Venezuela” and possibly masterminding an alleged “computer hacking” at the National Electoral Council (CNE), which declared Maduro the winner of Sunday’s elections without providing detailed data.
On Tuesday, after a meeting of Maduro’s top political and military advisers, he announced the creation of a special committee, assisted by Russian and Chinese experts, to evaluate the country’s biosecurity and an attack on the CNE’s communications systems.
“I am confident that the attacks were led by the power of Elon Musk,” he said.
Opposition figures and observers do not believe there was an actual hack, but that the authorities sabotaged the system themselves so they did not have to provide the real election results.
Before voters cast their votes, the 61-year-old Maduro was far behind opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia in independent polls.
Late on Tuesday, Maduro addressed hundreds of supporters from his balcony – and again attacked 53-year-old Musk.
“Venezuela, as I said yesterday and today, is facing domestic and international aggression from world powers, and now it is clear that Elon Musk is obsessed with the idea of taking over Venezuela and ruling it from abroad,” Maduro said.
“He is largely responsible for these attacks and acts of aggression,” he added, suggesting the existence of a “global alliance of the far right, the fascist far right, drug traffickers, Elon Musk and the imperialist US government.”
“All those who come after Venezuela, we will eliminate them.”
– ‘Shame on dictator Maduro’ –
Musk has regularly criticized Maduro’s policies towards X.
When asked about the criticism, a senior Venezuelan Foreign Ministry official said on condition of anonymity: “We know who Musk is. He is on the far right and supports (Argentine President Javier) Milei… So we take all these comments as compliments. “
Before Sunday’s election, Musk posted: “It’s time for the people of Venezuela to have the chance for a better future. Support Maria Corina!”
He was referring to the extremely popular opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who was not allowed to act against Maduro.
After the vote and the announcement of the results, Musk said on Sunday: “Shame on dictator Maduro” and “What a mockery.”
He also posted a 2020 announcement from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration about criminal charges against Maduro for drug trafficking and a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
The messages sparked outrage from Maduro.
“He wants to come here with his weapons and an army to invade Venezuela. Elon Musk, good thing you showed your face, because we knew you were behind it! With your money and your satellites,” Maduro said.
“He wants to control the world, he already controls Argentina… Do you want to fight? Elon Musk, I am ready. I am the son of Bolivar and Chavez, I am not afraid of you, Elon Musk… The people defeated Elon Musk’s bots, we defeated Elon Musk’s bots!”
Musk’s response came in Spanish: “A donkey knows more than Maduro.”
The billionaire later added: “Sorry for comparing the poor donkey to Maduro. That was an insult to the animal kingdom.”
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
