The billionaire’s interest in Europe divides opinion – while some leaders are raising the alarm, Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni insists there is ‘no danger’.
Elon Musk urged German voters to get behind the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in next month’s national election during a show with the party leader.
American tech billionaire, who should have a role in the administration of the newly elected US president Donald Trumpbroadcast live on Thursday his conversation with Alice Weidel, the AfD’s candidate for chancellor, on his social network X.
More than 190,000 X accounts joined the chat, in which Musk introduced Weidel as “the leading candidate to lead Germany”, warning viewers that they should vote for the party “otherwise things will get very, very much worse in Germany”.
“Only the AfD can save Germany. End of story,” he said.
Musk, who is expected to have an advisory role in the Trump administration, has been increasingly vocal in his support for far-right parties in Europe, showing particular interest in economic powerhouse Germany, where he is opening the first European factory of his Tesla car company in 2022.
During the conversation, Musk doubled down on his support for the AfD, an anti-immigrant and anti-Islam party, after previously sharing his thoughts in X posts and opinion published by the newspaper Welt am Sonntag.
Musk and Weidel agreed that Germany is hamstrung by “crazy” energy policies, excessive bureaucracy and uncontrolled immigration, comparing the media’s treatment of the AfD to that of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler’s treatment of pro-Jewish votes in the 1930s.
“People like to censor things they don’t agree with,” said Musk, who insisted Weidel wasn’t proposing “anything outrageous.”
Musk, a self-described libertarian, called German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier a “tyrant” for criticizing the AfD and called on Chancellor Olaf Scholz to resign after a deadly car attack at a German Christmas market last month.
Both are members of the center-left Social Democratic Party.
‘Lies and misinformation’
Leaders across Europe have expressed concern over Musk’s political interventions. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez accused Musk of undermining democracy, without naming him directly, while France’s foreign minister called on the European Union to use its laws more strictly to protect itself from outside interference.
But the Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloniwho heads the far-right anti-immigration Brothers of Italy party, defended Musk on Thursday.
“I don’t see that danger for democracy. Elon Musk is a very famous and rich person who expresses his ideas,” she said.
Meloni’s government is currently considering a possible communications security contract that would rely on Starlink, part of Musk’s SpaceX business.
The Italian leader says Italy faces a dilemma over how to protect its sensitive communications because there are currently no alternative systems to Starlink supported by Italy or the EU.
But the project has been sharply criticized by opposition parties questioning whether the handling of such communications should be entrusted to Musk’s company.
“Is the problem with SpaceX that it is a private company or is it Elon Musk’s political ideas?” Meloni asked.
