Putin's 'Elon Musk' directive

Russian President Vladimir Putin has instructed Gazprombank, one of the largest Russian banks, to cooperate with Elon Musk. Putin stated, "We need to join forces with Musk."

Putin met with Gazprombank Deputy Chairman Dmitry Zauers during the "Future Technologies Forum" held in the capital, Moscow.

While examining batteries used in rocket and space technologies with Zauers, Putin said, "We need to join forces with Musk."

Pointing out that Musk is involved in the restructuring process of US administrative units, Putin said, "Once the restructuring process is finished, he will return to scientific matters. Cooperate with him. We are discussing working together in space; we can cooperate in this field as well."

Musk, the owner of Tesla, SpaceX, and X, also serves as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the US.

Gazprombank is among the Russian banks sanctioned by the US.