As he intervenes more and more in its political developments, concerns regarding the motivations behind his actions flare up, as there are not a few who believe that his ultimate goal is the very collapse of the European edifice.
the world’s richest man seems to have a new goal: to overthrow Europe, one government at a time.
Musk is leading a populist wave that targets many centrist European leaders. “From MAGA to MEGA: Make Europe Great Again!” he wrote in a post on Saturday.
Responding to the challenge, several European Union leaders accused him of meddling in their affairs and promoting dangerous individuals. Musk has run a personal online campaign against the British government, lobbied for the release of a far-right activist there and supported the far-right AfD party in Germany.
At the same time, a wave of misinformation in Musk’s platform on the occasion of the reactions to the high levels of immigration, has caused irritation in European governments. Some in Britain blame X for contributing to a wave of far-right riots last summer.
However, as CNN points out, they make it a difficult problem to solve. The questions being asked among European leaders are twofold: Why does Musk care about Europe and what can we do about it?
Neither is easy to answer. “Europeans are stuck,” said Bill Echikson, senior fellow in political technology at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) think tank and former head of European communications at Google.
he pointed out. “They blame disinformation and automated bots for the results in the European elections as they fueled the rise of extremists.
“(But) they have no plan. They don’t really know how to respond yet.”
Elon Musk’s motivation
Musk’s political involvement began when the SpaceX and Tesla tycoon acquired Twitter in 2022. “For Twitter to be worthy of public trust, it must be politically neutral,” Musk insisted, arguing that “politics is war and the truth is the first victim.”
Today Musk is on the front line. The owner of the platform enjoys high levels of influence around the world that few unelected persons have ever had. It welcomes and shares the views of extremists and has strongly supported anti-establishment populists across Europe. It is not yet clear how much influence he will have on Trump’s foreign policy – which is precisely why, for now, European governments remain unsure of how to deal with his interventions.
But his comments have a broader, interventionist tone toward Europe coming from the new administration that could give Musk a role as interlocutor. Trump and Musk have already forged close ties with figures whose politics at least partially align with their own, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
As with Trump, polls show Musk is unpopular across Europe.
“It’s interesting to see the similarities between him and Trump, their attempt to sway public opinion, especially, unfortunately, by spreading misinformation. Creating a lot of chaos, upsetting the balance,” analysts say.
That chaos intensified when Musk made a gesture with his right hand on stage during a post-inauguration rally that many in Europe interpreted as a Nazi or Roman salute used by fascist leaders in Germany and Italy. Musk attributed the backlash to a misinterpretation, writing to X that “the everyone is Hitler attack is very tiring.”
There is disagreement over Musk’s motive for attacking Europe.
It could be personal. “When Elon took over Twitter, there was a concerted effort to keep companies from advertising on his platform, to alienate him, to invalidate him,” said Trevor Traina, Trump’s previous ambassador to Austria. “So I think what we’re seeing today is his response.”
At the same time, Musk’s motivation could be financial in the context of the theory that wants an innovative entrepreneur to clash with the regulatory authorities.
Musk has taken issue with the bureaucracy surrounding the tech sector in Europe. It has a huge Tesla factory in Germany, a country where it has focused its attacks, and is planning an expansion of the complex.
Can Europe resist?
Musk has already made his preferences known to the people and parties that shape European politics. He writes frequently for Reform UK, the populist British party and Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). But he does not post about Marine Le Pen, Emmanuel Macron’s French rival, nor does he seem interested in Austria.
British and German politics are malleable terrain. The ruling parties in both countries are unpopular.
Germany will hold elections next month in which the AfD could come in second place according to opinion polls. Just last year, the AfD became the first far-right party to win regional elections in Germany since the Nazi era.
And they have something else in common: The countries in question have failed to adequately address voter anger over immigration, which is at the heart of the political debate in Europe.
However, Musk will need to build lasting alliances to have serious influence. He has already clashed publicly with Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, who refused to back Musk’s support for jailed far-right leader Tommy Robinson. His party had hoped for a huge financial donation from Musk, but the controversy removes that possibility.
It will also face regulatory authorities. A fine, possibly as high as 6% of X’s global annual turnover, is expected once the EU completes an investigation into whether the platform breached rules set by the Digital Services Act, which regulates how which the tech industry handles disinformation and illegal content on social media, as well as illegal goods and services in online markets.
In Britain, Musk was called to testify before the parliamentary Science, Innovation and Technology Committee about his company’s algorithm after he was accused of promoting misinformation about a stabbing attack on children last summer that led to clashes with police and riots .
For now, Musk’s closeness to Trump may shield him from that kind of scrutiny. But the more the tech tycoon becomes embroiled in Europe’s affairs, the more difficult that approach becomes.
