President-elect Donald J. Trump spoke on Wednesday with Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, and during the call handed the phone to Elon Musk, the increasingly influential billionaire who has played a key role providing communications capability to Ukraine in its war with Russia, a person familiar with the discussion said.

It is not clear what the three men discussed or whether they touched on any change in US policy towards Ukraine in the wake of Trump’s election. Musk was with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, his private club and residence in Florida, and the tone of the call was described as positive, according to the person familiar with the discussion.

A second person briefed on the call also confirmed Musk’s participation, which was reported earlier by Axios.

A Trump spokesman did not immediately provide a comment on the call.

Trump has promised to bring a quick end to the conflict, a position widely seen as allowing Russia to hold on to the territory it has seized since invading Ukraine in 2022. During a presidential debate, Trump declined to say which side he wanted to see win the war, and he has suggested that Zelensky has got too much military and financial aid from the Biden administration.

Musk, who has become close to Trump in recent months and provided him with financial and logistical support in the presidential campaign as well as full-throated backing on his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, has been a vital supplier to the Ukrainian war effort through his Starlink satellite communications network.

Musk is a major US government contractor, especially to the Pentagon, which relies heavily on SpaceX for launch capacity. He has already sought to have some of his employees placed in government jobs when Trump takes office, and Trump has said he wants Musk in a role recommending ways to slash government spending.

After Trump was declared the winner of the presidential race early on Wednesday, Zelensky urged Trump to help strengthen Ukraine against Russian aggression.

“For us in Ukraine, and all across Europe, it has always been crucial to hear the words of the then 45th President of the US about ‘peace through strength,’” Zelensky wrote on social media. “When this principle becomes the policy of the 47th President, both America and the entire world will undoubtedly benefit.”

Zelensky added: “It’s no coincidence that Ronald Reagan is mentioned so often these days — people want confidence, they want freedom, they want a normal life. For us, that means a life free from Russian aggression, with a strong America, a strong Ukraine, and strong allies.”

House control

Trump and his fellow Republicans waited on Friday to see whether they would retain control of the House of Representatives, which would complete an electoral sweep
of both branches of government and allow Trump to more quickly advance his agenda.

Counting of ballots in California, Arizona and some other states was still underway three days after Election Day, and several important races remained too close to call, leaving neither party with a clear majority.

On Thursday, Republicans added three seats to their total, bringing them within a handful of seats of winning the House, and with it, control of the legislative agenda.

Democrats picked up one more seat on Thursday, and it still remained mathematically possible for them to take control from Republicans.

New York Times News Service