"I’m trying my hardest to de-escalate this situation and obviously failing," Musk said in a social media post, in response to comments made by Kim Dotcom, another entrepreneur.
Musk said on Saturday that SpaceX would continue to pay for Starlink internet services in Ukraine despite substantial financial loss.
Dotcom replied to Musk’s tweet saying: "In other words you will continue your support for the US proxy war in Ukraine despite your better knowledge that this is a US proxy war and the risk of a nuclear war because of the US proxy war?" Dotcom added that personal interests must be put aside for the sake of humanity.
In September, media reported that SpaceX had notified the US Defense Department that it would not be able to donate its services to Ukraine indefinitely and requested the US government to step in and fund them.
On Friday, Musk, who is the founder of SpaceX and Tesla, confirmed these reports, saying that the company cannot continue funding Starlink satellite services for Ukraine.
At the start of October, Musk urged the public to support peace initiatives between Ukraine and Russia, saying that Ukraine’s victory in a "total war" was "unlikely." He also published two polls asking for public opinion about a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia and about the status of Donbas and Crimea. The polls have drawn criticism from senior Ukrainian officials, including Volodymyr Zelensky.