Tech billionaire Elon Musk on Saturday once again supported Germany’s far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) in an op-ed for Germany’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
What Mr Musk Said
In a post on X a week ago, Musk said only the AfD could save Germany. In an op-ed, he called Alternative for Germany (Afd) “the last spark of hope” for the country.
“It is wrong to portray the AfD as right-wing extremists. Does that sound like Hitler, given that party leader Alice Weidel has a same-sex partner from Sri Lanka? Please!” Musk wrote. .
Musk went on to claim that the AfD takes strong positions on issues such as economic recovery, energy supplies and immigration control.
“Despite being described as far-right, the AfD represents a political realism that resonates with many Germans who feel their concerns are ignored by the establishment. “We’re addressing the current issues while eliminating the political correctness that often obscures them. The truth,” Musk said.
Reactions to Musk’s article
With just seven weeks left until Germany’s snap election, Musk’s op-ed drew sharp reactions from across the country.
Shortly after the article was published online, Eva Marie Kogel, the editor of the opinion section, posted to X that she had submitted her resignation with a link to the comment.
Musk’s support for the AfD has shocked Berlin, with some lawmakers accusing the SpaceX chief of meddling in German politics.
Former Health Minister Jens Spahn criticized Elon Musk’s comments about the AfD, saying the party wants to leave NATO, reinvigorate Nord Stream 2 and shift Germany’s focus from the US to Russia. He pointed out that there was. Spahn also highlighted the AfD’s opposition to the Tesla factory in Grünheide.
rebuttal article
The Welt Group’s future editor-in-chief, Jan-Philippe Bourgaard, disagreed with Musk’s comments in his own op-ed published alongside Musk’s. “Musk’s diagnosis is correct, but his solution that only the AfD can save Germany is fatally wrong,” Burgaard said.
Other journalists at Welt also expressed their disapproval of X.
In 2021, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency identified the AfD as a suspected state-level extremist organization.
In Germany, a snap election is scheduled for February 23 after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition government collapsed last month.
