Few European leaders have felt Elon Musk's wrath on social media more than German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Tech billionaire owner X called him an “incompetent idiot” and urged him to resign. On Thursday, Musk will use his platform to host Alice Weidel, head of the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party, for a lengthy conversation.
For many German politicians, this smacks of political interference, with the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party finishing second in opinion polls ahead of the federal election scheduled for February 23.
“You have to stay calm,” Schultz says. “Don't feed the troll.”
Although some European leaders, particularly Italian Giorgia Meloni, have found favor with Musk, others are finding it difficult to ignore him, as he ventures into their domestic politics ahead of a new role as an advisor to the next US president, Donald Trump.
Within 24 hours, four European governments objected to Musk's posts.
French President Emmanuel Macron was among the first to express his disbelief on Monday.
“Ten years ago, who would have believed it, if we had been told that the owner of one of the largest social networks in the world would support a new international reactionary movement and directly interfere in elections, including in Germany?” He said.
ReutersNorwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Sture also commented that he found it “troubling that a man with great access to social networks and significant economic resources would be directly involved in the internal affairs of other countries.”
Spanish government spokeswoman Pilar Alegría said digital platforms like X must act “absolutely impartially and above all without any kind of interference.”
Musk highlighted crime statistics in Norway and Spain, and blamed the deadly attack on a Christmas market in Germany on “unrestrained mass migration.”
In the past few days, Musk has written several posts attacking UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his administration over grooming rings and child sexual exploitation.
“Those who spread lies and misinformation as widely as possible do not care about the victims, they care about themselves,” the British Prime Minister said, without mentioning Musk personally.
Two notable exceptions in Europe are Italy and Hungary.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has built close ties with Elon Musk, describing him as a “genius” and “extraordinary innovator.”
ReutersHungary's Viktor Orban, who met Musk while visiting Trump at Mar-a-Lago last month, shares Musk's dislike of Hungarian-born liberal philanthropist George Soros.
But the tech billionaire's intervention in German politics is the most controversial, due to the impending elections.
He has spoken out several times in favor of the AfD in recent weeks, and wrote a highly controversial article in the newspaper Welt am Sonntag in which he described the AfD as Germany's “last spark of hope.”
Musk justified his intervention at the time because of his company Tesla's financial investment in Germany. He said the depiction of the AfD as far-right was “clearly false”, because Alice Weidel had a gay partner from Sri Lanka.
German security services have classified the Alternative for Germany party as either far-right or suspected extremist, and courts have ruled that it pursues anti-democratic goals.
While Olaf Scholz sought to remain calm, the Green Party's chancellor candidate, Robert Habeck, was more blunt: “Hands off our democracy, Mr. Musk.”
Liberal Democratic Party leader Christian Lindner suggested that Musk's goal may be to weaken Germany to the benefit of the United States, “by recommending voting for a party that will hurt us economically and isolate us politically.”
Thierry Breton, the former head of the European Commission's digital agenda, took to
The European Commission said that nothing in the EU's digital services rules prohibits live broadcasts or anyone expressing personal opinions.
However, a spokesperson for platform owners warned that they should not offer “preferential treatment”. Musk's X is already under investigation and the European Union says the live stream will be subject to that investigation.
While Musk has been vocal about German policy, he has also expanded his business interests in Italy.
Giorgia Meloni was on a whirlwind trip to have dinner with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago when reports emerged that Italy was in talks with Musk's SpaceX to sign a $1.6bn (£1.3bn) deal, under which Starlink satellites would provide encrypted internet and communications services. to the Italian government.
A deal does not appear to have been concluded yet, and Roma quickly denied any contracts had been signed.
Musk said on Monday that he was “ready to provide Italy with the most secure and advanced connectivity” – without confirming a deal had been reached.
But the suggestion that Starlink could be tasked with protecting Italian government communications was enough to cause concern among some opposition politicians in Rome.
Carlo Calenda, leader of the centrist movement, said, “Delivering such a delicate service to Musk while he sponsors the European far right, spreading fake news, and interfering in the internal politics of European countries cannot be an option.”
