Germany has responded to Elon Musk's commentary on migration in the country by openly expressing their disagreement. Musk recently shared a post on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), which highlighted his criticism of German non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operating in the Mediterranean and their alleged practice of "unloading illegal immigrants" in Italy.
The post from an X account with the handle "Radio Genoa" also expressed a desire for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party to win the upcoming elections and put an end to the practice of German NGO ships collecting illegal immigrants in the Mediterranean Sea and unloading them in Italy. The post highlighted that there are currently 8 German NGO ships funded by the government involved in this activity.
On Friday, Musk, the owner of the social media platform, shared the post with his 158 million followers, questioning whether the German public was aware of the situation. Responding to Musk's comment, the German Foreign Office opted to express their counterargument by stating, "Yes, and it's known as saving lives."
Musk doubled down on his criticism on Saturday, writing in another post: "Frankly, I doubt that a majority of the German public supports this."
Migrants walk past a housing block at Brandenburg's Central Immigration Authority center, in Eisenhuttenstadt, eastern Germany.
Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images
Berlin is currently embroiled in a dispute with Italy over NGO sea operations. Germanys Interior Ministry recently announced the indefinite suspension of its acceptance of migrants arriving from Italy as part of a voluntary European solidarity initiative.
At the MED9 countries' 10th summit on Friday, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni emphasized that the issue of migration cannot be effectively resolved if each nation simply passes it on to another. The summit brought together leaders from France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Croatia, and Slovenia in Valletta, Malta.
Meloni stated that she had a conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday and expressed her observation that Germany appeared to be retracting slightly.
According to Meloni, redistribution has never been a top priority for her, as she believes that the problem cannot be completely solved if each country attempts to shift it onto another. She argues that the work being done on the external dimension is the only way to address everyone's concerns.
After the meetings on Fridays, the MED-9 issued a joint statement emphasizing the urgency to swiftly address the growing influx of arrivals via Mediterranean routes. The statement highlighted the necessity for immediate and future measures, urging the European Union (EU) to take effective action by reducing initial movements, preventing departures, enhancing the rate of sending back rejected asylum seekers, and tackling the underlying causes of irregular migration.
Every year, tens of thousands of migrants embark on the perilous journey to seek safety and improved economic opportunities, fleeing from war, persecution, and poverty.
Frequently, their vessels are overcrowded and ill-equipped for the voyage, causing disputes between countries over the responsibility to rescue and provide refuge for these migrants.
CNNs Jessie Gretener, Sharon Braithwaite, and Barbie Nadeau contributed reporting.
