US senators seek probe of Elon Musk’s SpaceX contracts over Putin ties

The senators asked the departments of Defence and Justice in a letter on Friday to investigate whether the alleged communications “should force a review of Musk’s continued involvement in SpaceX’s contracts” with the government.

“These relationships between a well-known US adversary and Mr. Musk, a beneficiary of billions of dollars in US government funding, pose serious questions regarding Mr. Musk’s reliability as a government contractor and a clearance holder,” the letter says.

The two senators who signed the letter are Jack Reed of Rhode Island, who is also chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.

“Communications between Russian government officials and any individual with a security clearance have the potential to put our security at risk,” they wrote.