(Berlin) German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned Elon Musk’s “erratic statements” as well as the American billionaire’s support for the far-right AfD party, in an interview published on Saturday.
Posted at 7:45 a.m.
Questioned by Stern magazine about Mr. Musk’s barbs, who notably called him “crazy” at the beginning of November then an “incompetent imbecile” on December 20, before attacking German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, described as a “tyrant”, Mr. Scholz felt that “we had to keep calm”.
“In Germany, everything happens in accordance with the will of the citizens, and not according to the erratic declarations of an American billionaire,” declared the German leader, a month and a half before early legislative elections scheduled for February 23.
“The German president is not an anti-democratic tyrant and Germany is a strong and stable democracy – no matter what Mr. Musk says,” the Social Democratic Chancellor stressed in this interview.
Mr. Scholz, on the other hand, considers “much more problematic than these insults” Mr. Musk’s support for the AfD “a party which advocates a rapprochement with Putin’s Russia and wants the weakening of transatlantic ties.”
The Alternative for Germany (AfD), credited in the polls with second place (19% on average) in the legislative elections behind the conservatives (around 33%), recognized Tuesday in the Spiegel be in regular contact with the American businessman’s team.
The 53-year-old entrepreneur will participate in a conversation on January 9 with the leader of this training, Alice Weidel, on X.
Questioned by the magazine Stern While he was going to invite Mr. Musk for a discussion, Mr. Scholz said, “I don’t think we should try to curry favor with Mr. Musk. I leave that to others.”
The German Chancellor indicated that he met Mr. Musk in March 2022, during the inauguration of the Tesla factory in Brandenburg, not far from Berlin, at a “time when the local AfD was protesting against its establishment” .
Germany is not the only target in Europe of Mr. Musk’s attacks: he projects his influence for the benefit of the hard right, particularly in the United Kingdom and undermines the European Commission.
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