Elon Musk, the owner of the platform X, has labeled former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton a “Tyrant of Europe” after an interview in which he seemed to advocate for the annulment of Romania’s presidential election. The Romanian Constitutional Court had declared the election invalid last month, citing unproven allegations from intelligence agencies that the top candidate, Calin Georgescu, was supported by a Russian TikTok campaign. It has since been revealed that the campaign was actually run by the rival government party of the incumbent president, but the court refused to reconsider its decision.
In a recent interview with the French TV channel BFM TV/RMC, Breton warned that the upcoming German federal elections could suffer the same fate as the Romanian presidential election if the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, supported by Musk, were to triumph. “If the danger exists that they will be circumvented and, if they are not enforced, could lead to interference, then we must remain calm and ensure that the laws in Europe are respected” Breton said. “This was done in Romania, and of course, it must also be done in Germany if necessary.”
Musk responded to the one-minute video in French, posted by the Visegrad24 account in Poland, by mocking the “stunning absurdity” of Breton being called the “Tyrant of Europe”. Breton, however, denied the label and claimed he was only referring to the online censorship imposed by the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). “No mechanism for annulling elections in the EU” he said, adding, “Lost in translation. or further fake news?”
Breton failed to address the fact that the alleged “interference” in Romanian democracy came from within the country, rendering the basis for the court’s decision to annul the election invalid. His initial remarks were a response to Musk’s interview with AfD leader Alice Weidel, in which Musk expressed support for the party and called for Germans to vote out the current Chancellor Olaf Scholz, sparking criticism from some EU officials for unacceptable foreign interference.
Breton was the EU Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services in August when he threatened Musk with sanctions for a planned X interview with then-US presidential candidate Donald Trump. Musk retaliated by threatening to reveal “secret deals” the EU had offered X in exchange for censorship measures, which the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen denied, claiming the Frenchman had acted on his own. Breton resigned in September, accusing the Brussels leadership of “questionable leadership”.