Musk: The EU should be eliminated

Elon Musk has demanded the dismantling of the European Union after his social media platform X was hit with a 120 million (105 million) fine. In a series of posts on X, Musk criticized EU regulators for transparency violations and warned he might take action against each member state individually.

The EU should be dismantled and power returned to individual nations so that governments can better serve their citizens, he stated.

Shortly after, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk responded on X, urging restraint: Dear American friends, Europe is your closest ally, not your problem. Our shared security depends on unity and common strategy, as it has for the past 80 years.

Musks comments come amid mounting tension in Washington over the EUs direction. The White House recently released a national security strategy accusing the bloc of threatening political liberty and sovereignty, restricting free speech, and promoting uncontrolled migration. The 33-page document emphasized that protecting American workers and businesses would guide U.S. dealings with the EU.

The EUs fine followed a two-year probe, which found X violated transparency rules on three fronts: deceptive blue tick verification, insufficient disclosure of advertisers, and denial of data access to researchers. The penalties were 45 million, 35 million, and 40 million, respectively. A Commission spokesperson said the fines applied to Xs corporate structure as a whole, with Musk positioned at the top.

Musk reacted strongly: The EU imposed this enormous fine not only on X but also on me personally. It seems reasonable to hold the individuals responsible accountable as well.

U.S. officials have also criticized the ruling. Senator Marco Rubio described it as an attack on all American tech platforms and the American people by foreign governments, while Christopher Landau suggested it could further distance the U.S. from NATO commitments. Former President Donald Trump threatened additional tariffs if the EU continues penalizing U.S. tech firms, and his administration pushed for scrapping the Digital Services Act entirely.

European right-wing figures have echoed Musks stance. Dutch politician Geert Wilders called the EU a totalitarian institution and argued that the commission should be abolished instead of fining X.

Meanwhile, in the UK, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy proposed that rejoining the EU customs union could stimulate economic growth, reflecting ongoing debates over Brexit reversal among certain political circles.

Author: Natalie Monroe