The illustrated photo, obtained from social media, is a graphic of a proposed project after a Kremlin envoy suggested the United States should build a “Putin-Trump” rail tunnel under the Bering Strait to connect the two countries, allow for joint exploration of natural resources and serve as a “symbol of unity.”
Kirill Dmitriev/@kadmitriev Kirill Dmitriev via Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy on Friday implored Elon Musk and his tunneling company Boring Company to commit that Moscow would partially finance the construction of an undersea rail tunnel through the Bering Strait.
Kirill Dmitriev, head of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, said in a post on Musk’s social media platform
Dmitriev said such tunnels traditionally cost an estimated $65 billion to build, adding that The Boring Company and its technology could reduce those costs to $8 billion and complete the project within eight years.
“Let’s create the future together!” he wrote.
Dmitriev’s proposal follows a phone call between President Putin and President Donald Trump on Thursday, during which they planned to discuss a possible solution to the Ukraine war.
President Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior aides will meet with the Russian delegation next week before Trump and Putin meet in Budapest, Hungary.
Musk did not respond to a request for comment on the proposal.
Building an undersea tunnel in the Bering Strait will require Musk’s drilling company to work in subzero temperatures in an area with no existing infrastructure and where deep earthquakes are common.
The Boring Company does not have a track record of surviving such situations.
Previous tunneling operations were completed in hot, dry locations with lots of infrastructure and services nearby.
The Boring Company was recently fined by Nevada environmental regulators for an “unusual number of violations,” ProPublica reported, citing public records. These violations include digging without permits, discharging untreated water onto city streets, and spilling waste from trucks.
The Boring Company is currently working on a 16-mile tunnel project from downtown Nashville, Tennessee, to the airport, called the Music City Loop. Residents protested, in part, due to a lack of planning before The Boring Company’s project was approved in the flood-prone city.
U.S. President Donald Trump (right) walks with Russian President Vladimir Putin upon arrival at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025.
Andrew Harnik | Getty Images
Musk’s automaker Tesla has supply chain ties to Russia, and the CEO has been discussing other issues with Putin in recent years.
CNBC previously reported that the EV maker bought millions of euros worth of aluminum from Rusal, a company founded by sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.
The Wall Street Journal reported in October 2024 that Musk held secret talks with President Putin in 2022.
In one instance, Putin pressured Musk to order SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet communications service to leave Taiwan as a favor to Chinese President Xi Jinping, the report said, citing two people briefed on the request.
The Chinese government is a key ally of the Kremlin.
Musk’s conversations with Putin, who once led the KGB, reportedly took place during Musk’s leveraged takeover of Twitter, now known as X.
Mr. Musk’s aerospace and defense contractor SpaceX also worked with NASA to launch Russian astronauts to the International Space Station.
