'Don't feed the troll': European leaders hit back at Musk

When the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, was asked in an interview about the barrage of insults being directed at him and other German leaders by Elon Musk, the world's richest man, his reply was: "Don't feed the troll."

- Ashifa Kassam and Jon Henley

Speaking to the German weekly Stern, Scholz said he would make no efforts to engage with Musk, who has endorsed the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in next month's federal elections and will host a live discussion on his social media platform X with its candidate for chancellor, Alice Weidel. "I don't believe in courting Mr Musk's favour," he said. "The rule is: don't feed the troll."

France's president Emmanuel Macron on Monday joined Scholz, along with the Norwegian and British prime ministers, in responding to the barrage of hostile posts by Musk.

"Ten years ago, who would have imagined that the owner of one of the world's largest social networks would be supporting a new international reactionary movement and intervening directly in elections, including in Germany," Macron said.

In a speech to French ambassadors, Macron, who has previously cultivated a constructive relationship with Musk, recently inviting him to the Notre Dame Cathedral reopening, refrained from mentioning the billionaire by name - as did Norway's centre-left prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre. There was no doubt, however, who either leader was talking about.