Russians focus on Musk as they assess incoming Trump administration

As US President-elect Donald Trump continues to make heads turn with nominations for key roles in his incoming administration, Russians are trying to understand the appointments and what impacts they might have for Moscow.

Russian state TV has spent the last few days using their slickly produced talk shows to tell the Russian people what they should make of the incoming administration – in particular what it might mean for Russians and the war in Ukraine.

Evgeny Popov, a well-known face on Russian state TV and Duma representative used his show, co-hosted with his wife, to tear into Mike Waltz, Donald Trump’s pick for his national security adviser.

Waltz has previously expressed reservations about continued congressional support for Ukraine, and is a proponent of a peace plan for Ukraine – but has not ruled out applying pressure on Russia and Russian President Vladimir Putin to force him to the table. Waltz also described Russia as “a gas station with nukes” in an interview with NPR on November 4.

Popov was quick to point out the potential threat to Moscow, “(Waltz) at the Republican convention proposed deploying more American drones in the Black Sea and bragged about how Trump threatened to bomb, as he put it, ‘Putin’s Kremlin.’ That is what’s called the Russophobic Dream Team or the American dream team.”

But across the studio floor, Olga Skabeeva, Popov’s wife, was a little more welcoming of the pick of former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. Gabbard had been “clear on the reason for Russia’s special operation in Ukraine,” Skabeeva said, praising Gabbard’s criticism of US support for Kyiv.

Meanwhile on the streets in Moscow, people interviewed by CNN were largely not well versed with the incoming administration – except for when it came to Elon Musk, who has been named as the future leader of a new Department of Government Efficiency along with Vivek Ramaswamy.

Tatiyana, wrapped in her matching pink hat and scarf, told CNN that Elon Musk “is an example of the future of the planet. He does a lot to improve our planet, and this is the right development. Therefore, we wish him only prosperity and all the best.”

Elena, who was walking with her daughter, said of Musk: “Everything he’s done is very interesting, and the fact that he has such ideas is also, in principle, good for development in general.”

The tech tycoon’s status as a super-rich maverick who purchased X, formerly Twitter, and who wants to put civilians into space, means he’s more familiar to Russians than nominees for other prominent posts.

Asked about how they viewed the incoming administration and future relations between old adversaries, people were a little more divided.

“Trump said that ‘I will do everything for America’, but he did not say a word about Russia,” Sergey told CNN.

Vladimir Kostyukevich, however, said that Trump makes a good impression as a politician, citing his age and apparent energy – a barb perhaps at outgoing President Joe Biden.

On the thorny issue of Ukraine, invaded at Putin’s orders in February 2022, however, those who spoke to CNN expressed a desire for the war to come to an end, but many were not clear how Trump might be able to do it.

Elena said, “I don’t know how Donald Trump can resolve this. But I would really like this to be resolved as soon as possible and resolved in the most peaceful way possible, through negotiations, and not through the actions that are happening now.”

Tatiyana meanwhile hoped for peace and spoke warmly of Ukraine, a reminder of the bonds that tie the two nations together.

“It’s a good question. Ukraine is our brotherly nation. It has always been so. And despite the fact that relations are so complicated now, we still love Ukraine as before, they are our brothers, our relatives,” she said.

And Kostyukevich hoped for even more. “I don’t know if Trump will stick to his line. But I hope, that there will be a good agreement between Russia and Ukraine. And in general, to stop all this madness that’s happening in the world, well, in Israel, Palestine and Ukraine-Russia,” he said.