European capitals are bracing for the impact of a second Donald Trump presidency — and keeping an eye on his billionaire ally Elon Musk as well.
“Let’s hope he doesn’t do to American democracy what he did to Twitter. Democracy is a delicate treasure,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said in an interview with Le Parisien when asked about the part Musk could play in the new Trump administration.
Musk held a key role in Trump’s campaign, appearing at rallies, pouring millions into a pro-Trump political action committee he founded and using X to promote pro-Trump content in a bid to attract young male voters in particular.
The South Africa-born billionaire now seems poised to be onboard from the onset of Trump’s second term. In a surprising development, the tech tycoon joined a call between the United States president-elect and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week.
Barrot is familiar with Musk, having been France’s junior minister for tech when the Tesla owner completed the acquisition of the social media network now known as X in 2022. That same year, Barrot said that he was “appalled” by Musk’s handling of the platform. He later stated on multiple occasions that he would not oppose a ban in the European Union if X refused to abide by the Digital Services Act.
The two met at the company’s former headquarters in California in January 2023 to discuss this issue as well as the platform’s commitment to content moderation and child protection.
“We will never allow public debate to be outsourced to deregulated social networks in the hands of special interests, whether American or Chinese,” Barrot added in the Le Parisien interview published Sunday.
French President Emmanuel Macron was among the first leaders to congratulate Trump on his victory last week, and later argued that the 78-year-old’s return to power should push the European Union to become more independent from trading rivals such as China and the United States.
French minister to Musk: Don’t break democracy like you did Twitter
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