Elon Musk, leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany party, hosts Germany on Channel X ahead of the election | Election news

Billionaire’s interest in Europe divides public opinion – while some leaders sound the alarm, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni insists there is “no danger”.

Elon Musk urged German voters to stand behind the far-right Alternative for Germany party in next month’s national elections, during a broadcast with the party’s leader.

American technology billionaire, who is set to have a role in the administration of the US President-elect Donald TrumpHe live-streamed his conversation with Alice Weidel, the AfD’s candidate for chancellor, on his social media platform X on Thursday.

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“Only the AfD can save Germany,” he said. “End of story.”

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 Tesla automaker’s first European factory opens in 2022.

During the conversation, Musk emphasized his support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD), an anti-immigration and anti-Islam party, having previously shared his support for the AfD. ideas In X Publications and an opinion article published by the newspaper Welt am Sonntag.

Musk and Weidel agreed that Germany was handicapped by a “crazy” energy policy, excessive bureaucracy and uncontrolled immigration, and compared the media’s treatment of the AfD to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler’s treatment of pro-Jewish votes in the 1930s.

“People like to censor things they don’t agree with,” Musk said, insisting that Weidel had not suggested “anything outrageous.”

Musk, a self-described liberal, called German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier a “tyrant” for criticizing the AfD party and called on Chancellor Olaf Scholz to resign after a deadly car attack on a German Christmas market last month.

The two men belong to the center-left Social Democrats Party.

“Lies and misleading information”

Leaders across Europe have expressed concern about Musk’s political meddling. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez accused Musk of undermining democracy, without mentioning his name directly, while the French Foreign Minister urged the European Union to use its laws more forcefully to protect against external interference.

But the Italian Prime Minister Georgia MeloniHe, who heads the far-right anti-immigration Brotherhood of Italy party, defended Musk on Thursday.

I do not see this danger to democracy. She said that Elon Musk is a well-known and very wealthy person who expresses his ideas.

Meloni’s government is currently examining a potential communications security contract based on Starlink, part of Musk’s SpaceX business.

The Italian leader says Italy faces a dilemma on how to protect its sensitive communications as there are currently no Italian or EU-backed alternative systems for Starlink.

But the project came under sharp criticism from opposition parties who questioned whether 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.