> Moscow (AFP) – US tech tycoon Elon Musk is “truly a genius” for deploying thousands of satellites into orbit, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday, as Moscow seeks to develop its own satellite internet network. > The American tech titan is the owner of SpaceX, that launches rockets for NASA and runs the Starlink communications network. > >Russia, a spacefaring power, has long sought to develop its own satellite internet constellation for both civilian and military use. > >Putin’s comments come amid a spat between Ukraine and the United States over access to Starshield, a military-grade satellite network powered by Musk’s SpaceX. > >“Elon Musk is a genius, truly a genius,” Putin said while touring an exhibition on the sidelines of a Russia-Africa summit in Moscow. > >“He has how many units in orbit…? More than 5,000. And we’re taking our first steps,” he added. > >“We are in close contact with our American partners, including Mr. Musk, because it is crucial in orbit not to interfere with one another.” > >Ukraine began reporting problems using Starshield this month, following a row between Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and US President Donald Trump over a US-Russia diesel deal. > >Both Trump and Musk denied being responsible for the outages, although Musk later accused Ukraine of misusing SpaceX’s Starlink internet service for military purposes. > >Ukraine says the outages have frustrated its efforts to intercept Russian drones and has slowed its logistics on the front line, as the Ukraine-Russia conflict grinds through its fifth year.