Report: Elon Musk Met with Iran's UN Ambassador

Facts

• A day before being appointed by Pres.-elect Donald Trump as one of the leaders of a soon-to-be Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk met with Iran's ambassador to the UN, according to a New York Times report published Thursday.^[1]
• Two Iranian officials who spoke to the Times on the condition of anonymity described the Monday meeting between Musk and Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani in New York as a discussion of how to defuse tensions between Iran and the US.^[2]
• The officials said talks lasted over an hour and described them as "positive" and "good news." Musk did not respond for comment while Steven Cheung, Trump's director of communications, said, "We do not comment on reports of private meetings that did or did not occur."^[2]
• While talks, if they occurred, may have been congenial, it's not clear whether the feeling would be shared in Tehran. Last time Trump was president, he withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and imposed heavy sanctions.^[1][3]
• In January 2020, Trump ordered the US strike that assassinated the Iranian general Qassim Soleimani. During Trump's election campaign, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) briefed his team on an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate him — which is reportedly not tied to the two domestic attempts on his life.^[1][4]
• In the run-up to the election, Trump said being president is "a very dangerous business" — something he repeated throughout his campaign. This comes as Musk has become one of Trump's closest advisors since the election. Last week, he joined Trump's call with Ukrainian Pres. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and reportedly sat in on nearly every job interview.^[2][5][6][7]

Sources: ^[1]The Guardian (a), ^[2]The New York Times, ^[3]Council on Foreign Relations, ^[4]The Guardian (b), ^[5]New York Post, ^[6]Sky News and ^[7]Al Jazeera.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by The New York Times. An unlikely figure has emerged to play a central role in Trump's coming presidency — Elon Musk. Having broached this meeting with the Iranians and reports that he joined Trump's call with Zelenskyy last week, it's clear that Musk has Trump's ear, at least for the time being.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Guardian. While it's a big deal that Musk spoke to the Iranians, Trump's relationship with Tehran couldn't be much worse. After pulling out of the nuclear deal, the sanctions, and the killing of Qassim Soleimani, now the Iranians are reportedly seeking to assassinate him — if the ODNI is to be believed.