German government has perfect response to Elon Musk's anti-immigration rhetoric

The German government has clapped back at Elon Musk, after the X/Twitter owner appeared to suggest that it should not be funding a migrant welfare scheme in the Mediterranean.

Yesterday, Musk retweeted a post by Radio Genoa, which criticised the German state for funding charities which are rescuing migrants in southern Europe.

It suggested that right-wing party Alternative for Deutschland would not fund such a scheme via taxpayers’ money.

The post said: “Let’s hope the AfD wins the elections to stop this European suicide.”

Musk retweeted the post, adding: “Is the German public aware of this?”

The German Foreign Office responded with a simple statement. It said: “Yes. And it’s called saving lives.”

Germany’s centre-left government confirmed earlier in the week that it was financially supporting three non-governmental organisations that work in the Mediterranean to save migrants.

Critics pointed out that they drop the migrants off in Italy, rather than taking them back to Germany, which has in turn angered the far right Italian government.

AfD has risen to second in the polls in Germany by latching onto people’s fears over migration, as well as funding the green energy transition.

Musk, meanwhile, has increasingly inserted himself into politics of late.

Earlier in the week, he posted a video from a visit to the Mexico-US border, where he urged an overhaul of US immigration laws.

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