Musk and Trump, ostensibly political allies over cuts to federal spending, publicly clashed on June 5 in a series of exchanges across social media and in comments to reporters. The origin of the dispute is the impact Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill has on U.S. public debt.

Officials offered to mediate and even asylum for Elon Musk as many commented how a leader falling out with a top businessman was familiar to Russia.

The feud between Donald Trump and Elon Musk provoked chatter, mockery and amusement among the ruling class in Moscow, where one senior official joked about hosting peace talks and another said Musk should bring his businesses to Russia.