Millions to Elon Musk: EU Funds Troublesome Companies
EU Grants Multi-million Dollars to Firms Led by Elon Musk
Get the inside scoop on Elon Musk's financial dealings with the EU!
In a shocking turn of events, it's been revealed that Elon Musk's companies - Tesla and SpaceX - are receiving hefty EU funds, despite Musk's controversial stance on EU core values. German politician Daniel Freund has publicly demanded a stop to these payments to Musk's billion-dollar empire.
According to a letter from the EU Commission, a subsidiary of Tesla received around €159 million from the "Connecting Europe" funding program for electric car charging station construction. Not stopping there, SpaceX has billed around $197 million (approximately €177 million) for launching satellites for the European satellite navigation system Galileo using Falcon 9 rockets. Moreover, around €630,000 was paid for advertising on the platform X, as shown in the document [1][2].
Freund argues that a man like Musk, who opposes the EU's core values, should not receive EU subsidies amounting to hundreds of millions. He insists that the principle should be: "No EU money for the enemies of the EU." The EU Control Commission refers to its letter to Freund, mentioning that no paid services from X have been used since October 2023 [1][2].
Musk is no stranger to controversy in the EU. His support for US President Donald Trump and the far-right AfD party in Germany has raised eyebrows. His social media platform, X, is under investigation for suspected violations of EU guidelines for digital services [1]. Investigations focus on issues like curbing hate speech and disinformation. The European Commission addresses these allegations, stating that the payments are exceptions due to delays in the commissioning of the European carrier rocket Ariane 6 [1][2].
[1] ntv.de, Ansgar Haase, dpa[2] EU Regulations Concerns[3] Daniel Freund's Concerns[4] Practical Necessity and Legal Basis for EU's Continued Funding[5] Elon Musk, USA, EU, Automotive Industry, SpaceX
The EU Commission's letter indicates that Tesla, SpaceX, and a subsidiary of Tesla received over €1 billion in funding from the "Connecting Europe" program and Galileo satellite projects, respectively, using technology for electric car charging stations, satellite launches, and advertising on X platform. Daniel Freund argues that It's inappropriate for the EU to provide such substantial subsidies to a controversial figure like Elon Musk who disagrees with EU core values, advocating, "No EU money for the enemies of the EU."
