Tech billionaire Elon Musk, a close ally of US President-elect Donald Trump, met with Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in a bid to ease tensions between Tehran and Washington, The New York Times reported on Thursday.
The newspaper quoted unnamed Iranian sources as describing the meeting between the world’s richest man and Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani as “positive”.
According to the newspaper, the two met for more than an hour at a secret location on Monday.
Neither the Trump transition team nor Iran’s mission to the United Nations immediately confirmed the encounter, with the Iranian mission saying it had no comment.
If the meeting is confirmed, it could provide an early signal that Trump is serious about diplomacy with Iran and is not choosing the more aggressive approach favored by many in his Republican party as well as conservatives in Israel.
It would also again show the extraordinary influence of Tesla owner Musk and Ax, who has been a constant presence at Trump’s side, reportedly joining him on telephone calls with world leaders.
In his last term, Trump broke the agreement negotiated under his predecessor Barack Obama on Iran’s nuclear program, instead adopting a policy of “maximum pressure” that included forcing other countries not to buy oil from Iran.
But Trump has portrayed himself as a great dealmaker and during his latest campaign has voiced an openness to diplomacy, despite his stated support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has supported Israel’s war against Hamas. Has ordered a military attack on Iran in collaboration with.
Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian, considered a moderate in the religious state, told the visiting head of the UN nuclear watchdog on Thursday that Tehran wanted to dispel doubts about the country’s “peaceful” nuclear program.
Iran’s ambassador also urged Musk in their meeting to seek exemption from US sanctions and do business in Tehran, the Times said, citing an Iranian Foreign Ministry official.
Along with foreign policy, Trump has put Musk and another wealthy entrepreneur, former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, in charge of a new “Department of Government Efficiency,” tasked with overhauling the federal bureaucracy.
The new initiative has raised questions about conflicts of interest given Musk’s extensive interactions between businesses and government.
For the program, X, formerly created an account on Twitter, where it asked applicants to apply via direct message.
“We need super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unnecessary cost-cutting,” said a post on do.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
