Elon Musk makes surprise virtual appearance at AfD Party's rally in Germany, days after the salute saga

Tesla CEO Elon Musk stirred yet another controversy after he made a surprise appearance during Germany’s Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) election campaign event. The rally was taking place in Halle in eastern Germany on Saturday, where Musk addressed the hall filled with 4,500 people virtually.

While speaking to the gathering alongside AfD’s party co-leader, Alice Weidel, Musk spoke about the need to preserve the German culture and protect the rights of the German people. “It’s good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything,” the billionaire averred.

Musk’s participation at an AfD rally came a week after the SpaceX CEO stirred a storm when he made a hand gesture that appeared to be a Nazi Salute, at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration parade. A few days after the incident Musk received flak for sharing a holocaust joke after Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended him in the salute saga.

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What Musk said at the rally

In the Saturday event, the billionaire said that the “children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents, let alone their great grandparents”, which many believe that he was referring to Germany’s Nazi past. “There is too much focus on past guilt, and we need to move beyond that,” he added.

Musk went on to accuse the ruling German government of suppressing speech and attacked the country’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The Tesla CEO’s attack came days after Scholz said that he does not support freedom of speech when it is used for extreme-right views.

In his address, Musk later promoted the far-right party, which he endorsed at the end of last year. “I’m very excited for the AfD, I think you’re the best hope for Germany’s fight for a great future for Germany,” he told onlookers. After Musk’s speech, Weidel thanked the tech-mogul for his support.

She emphasised that Republicans are “making America great again” and insisted that her party would “make Germany great again”. Last month, the AfD party co-leader sat down with Musk for an interview on X. The close ties between Weidel and Musk are now raising concerns about election meddling.

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Despite harsh winter conditions, anti-far-right campaigners staged their own demonstration against the rally. As many as 100,000 gathered around Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate and up to 20,000 in Cologne, including people of all ages carrying colourful umbrellas.

With inputs from Reuters.