Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman entered the spotlight five years ago thanks to his role in then-President Donald Trump's first impeachment trial.

Vindman made headlines again this week when he accused Trump and Elon Musk of doing "dirty work" for Russian President Vladimir Putin. For his part, Musk replied by saying that Vindman has "committed treason."

Vindman: Putin is using Musk "to do his bidding"

According to Breitbart, Musk's remarks came in the wake of comments that Vindman made during a recent television interview.

"Clearly Putin has a type," Vindman said of Russia's president. "He likes narcissists and egomaniacs that he knows that he knows as a case officer who could easily pander to manipulate to do his dirty work."

"We are under attack," the former Army officer continued. "Russia has been using different levers, whether that's corruption networks, in this case it's influencers like Donald Trump, like Elon Musk, to really kind of sow discord."

"And it's particularly troubling with Elon Musk in this case, because Elon Musk has access to state secrets. He has top secret security clearance," Vindman declared. "It's possible that some of that is seeping through."

"Putin has been very effective in playing both Trump and Elon and he's been using the richest man in the world to do his bidding," Vindman added.

Musk says Vindman is a traitor who "will pay the appropriate penalty"

"In some cases that’s encouraging him, probably, to support Donald Trump. That’s not speculation. We see how far Elon has gone," the former soldier went on to assert.

For his part, Musk responded with a social media post in which he made counter allegations against Vindman while also uttering an ominous warning.

Vindman is on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs and has committed treason against the United States, for which he will pay the appropriate penalty

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 27, 2024

"Vindman is on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs and has committed treason against the United States, for which he will pay the appropriate penalty," Musk wrote.

Lawmaker accused Vindman of trying to profit from war in Ukraine

Fox News reported in March of 2023 that Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn accused Vindman of being an "opportunist" who was seeking to profit from the war in Ukraine.

Blackburn pointed to an article published by the conservative website Human Events which cited documents showing that Vindman attempted to secure a $12 million contract for a company he leads.

Specifically, Vindman proposed that "Trident Support would bring support closer to the front lines by providing a logistical midpoint from which equipment could be distributed."