TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Swedish cartoonist created this illustration to satirize the gravitational pull the China market appears to have on Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk at the expense of Taiwan's sovereignty.
Hot on the heels of Musk's widely panned "peace plan" for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Financial Times on Oct. 7 published an interview with Musk where he recommended Taiwan become absorbed into China as a special administrative zone that is "reasonably palatable." The tech tycoon then speculated that while it "won't make everyone happy," the terms of Beijing's rule over Taiwan could be "more lenient than Hong Kong."
Initially, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Mao Ning (毛寧) was cited by Chinese state-run Central Television News on Oct. 8 as describing Musk's proposal to be an "inappropriate statement." However, on Oct. 9, Mao backtracked on his previous comment and was quoted by CGTN as appearing to support Musk's claims:
"Provided that China's sovereignty, security and development interests are guaranteed, after reunification Taiwan will enjoy a high degree of autonomy as a special administrative region."
The next day, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) announced that Tesla's Model S and Model X variants would be exempt from the vehicle purchase tax. Taiwanese politicians and citizens alike said they believed Musk's pro-China comments reflected his business interests, with 30-50% of Tesla’s production coming from his Shanghai factory.
Swedish journalist Jojje Olsson posted an article on his news blog Kinamedia on Monday (Oct. 17) titled "Satire: Elon Musk gravitating towards China’s stance on Taiwan" and included an illustration by Swedish artist Niklas Eriksson (@KluddNiklas). Olsson noted the remarkable "coincidence" that Tesla's Model S and Model X were coming back to China with new tax incentives, just a day after the foreign ministry gave their blessing to Musk's Taiwan scheme.
In the illustration, Musk is drifting away in a spacesuit from a blue, Earth-like planet labeled Taiwan toward a red planet reminiscent of the mogul's coveted planet of Mars. However, this planet is overrun by People's Liberation Army tanks and is labled "No Taiwan."
Standing on the planet is Chinese Chairman Xi Jinping (習近平), who beckons to Musk with thick stacks of Renminbi in both of his hands. Through his bulbous helmet, Musk can be seen raising his eyebrow as he inspects Xi's wads of cash.
