Elon Musk's ties 'to other countries are worth considering,' Biden says
Joe Biden during a press conference at the White House, November 9, 2022. © REUTERS - TOM BRENNER
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
Does Elon Musk's recent takeover of Twitter pose a threat to US national security?
The question was put to Joe Biden during a press conference Wednesday at the White House.
The US president replied that some of the billionaire's financial supporters are worth looking into.
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The words are carefully chosen, but Joe Biden does not shy away from the question.
"
I think that Elon Musk's cooperation and / or technical relations with other countries deserve to be examined
," replied the American president on Wednesday November 9 during a press conference.
► Also to listen: What future for Twitter under the leadership of Elon Musk?
The question posed to the American president concerned the involvement of Saudi Prince Al-Walid bin Talal in
the takeover of Twitter
by the boss of the car manufacturer Tesla.
The prince contributed to the investment fund created for this purpose the 35 million shares he held in the social network, thus becoming the second largest shareholder in the group after Elon Musk.
Shortly after the takeover of Twitter at the end of October, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy
tweeted
that "
we should be concerned that the Saudis, who have a clear interest in suppressing political expression and influencing politics American, are now the second owner of a major social media platform
.
The senator also announced that he would ask the Senate Foreign Investment Committee to open an investigation into “
the national security implications of the takeover of Twitter by Saudi Arabia
”.
Geopolitical interests
Do the Saudis have an interest in influencing American policy?
At this point, Joe Biden is not commenting, but according to him, the question deserves to be examined.
Whether or not Elon Musk is "
doing something inappropriate, and I'm not implying that he is, it's worth looking at, that's all I can say about it
."
There remain Elon Musk's comments on ultra-sensitive subjects.
Return Crimea to Russia to repair the historical error, reunite Taiwan with China in the name of Chinese national unity... This kind of tweet finds an attentive ear in Moscow and Beijing.
Knowing that China is Tesla's first market where the group also has a factory in Shanghai.
(
with AFP
)
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United States
Joe Biden
Twitter
Elon Musk