Germany called for limiting the influence of social network X in Europe over Musk's comments

Lars Klingbeil, co-chairman of the German Social Democratic Party (SPD), has called for limiting the influence of social network X (formerly Twitter) in the European Union following remarks made by US billionaire Ilon Musk on German politics.

"We must act more offensively and effectively limit the power of large internet platforms such as Musk's short messaging service X. The tech billionaire is trying to use his influence to sway the course of world politics," Klingbeil said in an interview with Funke Media Group, quoted by Spiegel magazine.

According to Klingbeil, the European Commission should counteract this primarily through stricter regulation of large platforms.

The politician said it was necessary to develop legal tools against fake news in order to limit "the power of individuals" and "prevent a serious threat to democracy."

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Earlier, on December 20, Musk wrote in X that only the Alternative for Germany party can save Germany. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz disagreed with his position and said that freedom of speech in his country does not mean that the opinions of multi-billionaires are correct.

About a week after that, Musk published an article in the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, where he criticized the economic and cultural policies of the FRG and reiterated his support for the AdG. He called the party the last spark of hope for Germany and urged Germans to vote for it. The publication of the businessman's material caused sharp disagreements in Welt's editorial office, which led to the resignation of the head of the newspaper's opinion department.