Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has expressed admiration for Tesla CEO Elon Musk, criticizing the negative portrayal he often receives. In an interview with Corriere Della Sera, Meloni stated that Musk is labeled a “monster” simply for aligning with what some consider the “wrong” side. She suggested that this criticism stems from his political affiliations and close ties to US President-elect Donald Trump. Musk, a key figure in Trump’s transition team, is poised to take on a significant advisory role in the incoming administration.
When asked if she is friends with Musk, Meloni said, “We are definitely two people who have a great relationship. Elon Musk is a brilliant man and it is always very interesting to talk to him.” She added, “Musk is a great personality of our time, an extraordinary innovator who always looks to the future.”
“It makes you smile quite a lot when those who until yesterday exalted Musk as a genius and today instead paint him as a monster, only because he chose the side considered “wrong” of the barricade. I have always not reasoned this way,” she told the publication.
Musk presented Italy’s PM, 47, with the Global Citizen’s Award at the Atlantic Council think tank’s Global Citizen Awards. “I thank Elon Musk, for the beautiful words that he had for me and for his precious genius for the era in which we live,” said Meloni in her thanks address at the event. The video of the same was shared recently by Tesla Owners Silicon Valley Association on Twitter and reposted by Elon Musk.
Meloni in the US
Italy PM Meloni was in the US recently to meet Trump. The US President-elect hailed Italian Prime Minister Meloni as a “fantastic woman” who has “really taken Europe by storm,” as per a report in CNN. A member of the right-wing
Brothers of Italy party, Meloni took office in October 2022. She has been recognised as the most powerful person in Europe for 2024 by Politico.
According to CNN reports, the details of the meeting have not been disclosed, although the Italian leader, like others, has been seeking to strengthen ties with the President-elect ahead of his inauguration on January 20.
One possible topic on the agenda was the detention of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was arrested in Iran last month, it said. Meloni’s visit to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida’s Palm Beach comes after she dined with the President-elect and Musk during the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris last month.
