‘Invasion vibes’: Elon Musk, German government spar over migrant rescues at sea

Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Friday criticised a German humanitarian group conducting a rescue operation.

In the Mediterranean Sea, suggesting such operations and their transport of rescued immigrants to Italy are a violation of the country’s sovereignty, reported Forbes.

Musk shared a video on X (formerly Twitter), late on Friday that showed migrants and aid workers on a boat. The video was posted by a user claiming to show German NGO ships in the Mediterranean Sea collecting illegal immigrants before they are unloaded in Italy.

The account that first put the content on X, praised the populist far-right Alternative for Germany party, which has taken a hard line on migration issues. “Is the German public aware of this?” Musk wrote in his repost.

Germany’s government rebuked the X owner after his criticism and replied to his post on X saying, “Yes. And it’s called saving lives”.

Musk said he doubted the majority of the German public supported the operations, claiming they are “surely” violations of Italy’s sovereignty and saying they had “invasion vibes.”

The German government confirmed this week it was backing three NGOs that operate in the Mediterranean Sea and bring migrants to Italy, according to Reuters. The agency reported the funding has been met with pushback from Italy’s government.

Far-right Italian Prime Minister Meloni said in a letter sent to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz this month that she “learned with astonishment” that Germany, “without coordinating with the Italian government,” allegedly decided to bankroll NGOs engaged in the “reception” of migrants in Italian territory.

Meloni suggested in the letter that Germany should instead focus on helping migrants on its own soil as it is struggling to provide space for asylum seekers. She argued the work of the NGOs incentivises people to attempt dangerous trips for asylum in other countries.