Key things to know about how Elon Musk has boosted hard-right figures in Europe

ROME (AP) — Elon Musk may have tumbled from political grace in Washington, D.C., but as he seeks to build a new political party, his power on X — where he commands the most popular account — remains unchecked.

Musk is a kingmaker on the platform he acquired in 2022 for $44 billion. He has used his influence to cultivate hard-right politicians and insurgent activists across Europe. A retweet or reply from Musk can lead to millions of views and tens of thousands of new followers, according to an Associated Press analysis of public data.

That fact has not been lost on influencers who have tagged Musk persistently, seeking a reply or a retweet. It has also fueled concerns in Europe about foreign meddling -- not from Russia or China, but from the United States.

“Every alarm bell needs to ring,” Christel Schaldemose, a vice president of the European Parliament who works on electoral interference and digital regulation, told AP.

The Associated Press analyzed more than 20,000 posts, which were compiled by Bright Data, over a three-year period from a sample of 11 European figures who had significant interactions with Musk and frequently promote a hard-right political or social agenda.

These case studies are not meant to be representative of a broad universe; rather they showcase the ways in which Musk’s engagement can have an impact on local influencers that share his views.

Since acquiring Twitter in October 2022, Elon Musk’s followers have more than doubled, to over 220 million. No other large account has shown such high or consistent growth.

The result: If Musk’s X account is his megaphone, it has gotten a lot bigger since he took over -- a change that has global implications.

The accounts Musk has been promoting are part of a growing global alliance of nationalistic parties and individuals united in common cause to halt migration, overturn progressive policies and promote an absolutist vision of free speech, which has rattled the foundation of a trans-Atlantic bond that guided U.S. and European relations for over eight decades.

Several of the accounts AP analyzed belong to people who have faced allegations of illegal behavior in their own countries. Tommy Robinson, an anti-immigrant agitator in the U.K., was sentenced in October to 18 months in prison for violating a court order blocking him from making libelous allegations against a Syrian refugee. Bjoern Hoecke, a politician from Germany’s Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party, was convicted last year of knowingly using a Nazi slogan in a speech.

Italian vice premier Matteo Salvini was acquitted in December of allegations he illegally detained 100 migrants aboard a humanitarian rescue ship

Among the others examined by AP: Alice Weidel, who helped lead Germany’s Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party to its best electoral showing this year; Eva Vlaardingerbroek, a Dutch influencer known as the “shieldmaiden of the far-right”; Naomi Seibt, a German activist dubbed the “anti-Greta Thunberg” now living in what amounts to political exile in Washington DC; Rubén Pulido and Foro Madrid, both associated with Spain’s populist Vox party; and Fidias Panayioutou, a politician from Cyprus who has also advocated for Musk’s companies.

These accounts collectively gained roughly 5 million followers from the time Musk took over Twitter in October 2022 through January of this year. Most saw triple-digit percentage increases in their followers -- as high as 920%, or in one case of a tiny account exploding over that time, topping 6,000%. Even some accounts that grew more steadily on their own saw their follower counts sharply begin rising once Musk started interacting with them. Similarly, on days Musk interacted with a post, the number of views the account got soared — in most cases, accruing two to four times as many views, with a few seeing boosts 30 or 40 times their normal daily viewership.

More established players in Musk’s orbit -- like Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose ruling Brothers of Italy party has neo-fascist roots — benefit less when Musk interacts with them on X, AP found.

Musk’s dominance creates a strong incentive for people to get Musk to engage with their content.

Naomi Seibt, a German climate skeptic, pinged Musk nearly 600 times over the past three years. Musk finally engaged in June 2024, when he asked her to explain why the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is so controversial in Germany.

Since then, Musk has replied to, quoted or tagged Seibt more than 50 times, and her followers have grown by more than 320,000 since Musk took over the platform. On days Musk interacted with Seibt, her posts, on average, got 2.6 times as many views.

“I didn’t intentionally ‘invade’ Elon’s algorithm,” Seibt told AP. “Obviously Elon has a lot of influence and can help share a message even with those who are usually glued to the legacy media, particularly in Germany.”

Alice Weidel, who helps lead the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, saw her daily audience surge from 230,000 to 2.2 million on days Musk interacted with her posts on X. After Musk hosted a livestream with Weidel on X, vice president JD Vance broke protocol and met her in Munich. Weidel’s party, which is fighting a lawsuit to block the German government’s decision to designate it as an extremist group, went on to secure its best electoral showing ever.

Musk has also used X to advocate for the leader of Italy’s hard-right League party, Matteo Salvini. On days Musk interacted with Salvini’s account, average views were more than four times higher than usual. Now serving as vice premier, Salvini has urged his government to move ahead with controversial contracts for Starlink and pushed back against European efforts to regulate content on X.

And Musk has a friend in Brussels: Fidias Panayiotou — a 25-year-old social media influencer from Cyprus. Before winning a surprise seat in the European Parliament last year, the Cypriot spent weeks on a quest to get Elon Musk to hug him. In January 2023, his wish came true. Their embrace went viral. Since taking office, Panayiotou has praised X on the floor of the European Parliament, pushed back against regulations that impact the platform, and credited Musk with sparking his call to fire 80% of EU bureaucrats.

Musk, evidently, was pleased. “Vote for Fidias,” he wrote on X. “He is smart, super high energy and genuinely cares about you!”

The endorsement has been viewed 11.5 million times.

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Kessler reported from Washington

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Contact AP’s global investigative team at Investigative@ap.org or https://www.ap.org/tips/

FILE - President Donald Trump, right, speaks during a news conference with Elon Musk in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, May 30, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

In this combination of 2023 photos, a worker removes parts of a sign on the Twitter headquarters building in San Francisco, on July 24, right; and workers install lighting on an "X" sign atop the downtown San Francisco building that housed what was previously known as Twitter, rebranded "X" by new owner Elon Musk, on July 28. (AP Photos/Godofredo A. Vásquez, Noah Berger)

FILE - Elon Musk speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

NEW DELHI (AP) — India signed a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with Oman on Thursday as part of its broader strategy to offset the impact of steep U.S. import tariffs and widen export destinations during growing global trade uncertainties.

This is the second free trade agreement signed by New Delhi in the past six months, the first one being inked with the United Kingdom in May.

The India-Oman agreement was signed in Muscat in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Oman’s head of state, Sultan Haitham bin Tarik.

The deal aims to boost bilateral trade and push India’s exports of engineering goods, textiles, leather, pharmaceuticals and agricultural products. It will provide Indian goods zero-duty market access on 98.08% of Oman’s tariff lines, India's Trade Ministry said in a statement.

India has offered Oman tariff liberalization on 77.79% of its tariff lines, which will cover nearly 95% of New Delhi’s imports from Muscat, the ministry said.

In recent months, India has accelerated a push to finalize several free trade agreements, or FTAs. The country is in advanced talks with the European Union, New Zealand and Chile, among other countries.

FTAs are a central pillar of India’s economic strategy as it seeks deeper integration into global supply chains, stronger export growth and sustained job creation. By lowering tariffs and setting predictable trade rules, the pacts would help Indian businesses remain competitive and expand access to newer markets.

With global trade increasingly shaped by tariff disputes and geopolitical tensions, India is betting that a wider network of trade agreements will help cushion external shocks and anchor its export ambitions.

The stepped-up negotiations come as Indian exporters face pressure from higher U.S. import tariffs of 50%, which went into effect in August. While the two countries have been negotiating a bilateral trade agreement, the tariffs have weighed on sectors such as textiles, auto components, metals and labor-intensive manufacturing.

“India is clearly using FTAs as a strategic tool to diversify export markets and soften the impact of steep and uncertain U.S. tariffs,” trade analyst Ajay Srivastava said.

In all, India has 15 free trade agreements covering 26 countries and six preferential trade agreements, with another 26 nations while negotiating with more than 50 other partners, Srivastava said.

Once the ongoing talks conclude, India will have trade agreements with virtually all major global economies except China, he said.

India signed comprehensive economic cooperation and trade agreements with the United Arab Emirates and Australia in recent years, lifting bilateral trade with both countries. In May, Britain and India announced that they had agreed on a hard-wrought FTA that will slash tariffs on products including Scotch whisky and English gin shipped to India, and Indian food and spices sent to the U.K.

The recent agreements have reinforced the case for faster negotiations and clearer frameworks for business, officials said.

“India is negotiating several FTAs” at a time of challenges in global trade, Trade Secretary Rajesh Agarwal told reporters this week. “I see positive progress on several of these, next year.”

But challenges remain as Indian negotiators face pressure to protect small farmers and domestic industries, even as trading partners push for greater market access.

India and the U.S. hoped to have the first tranche of a bilateral trade agreement by the fall, but it hasn't come through, because ties have been strained following India’s unabated purchase of discounted Russian crude oil. Washington says the purchases help fund Moscow’s war machine in the ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

In recent weeks, there have been signs of tempers cooling. Modi applauded Trump’s peace plan to try to end the Russia-Ukraine war, and the two leaders recently spoke over the phone to discuss mutual interests, including trade.

A team of U.S. negotiators led by Deputy Trade Representative Rick Switzer visited New Delhi last week and held talks with Indian officials. Switzer discussed a India-U.S. economic and technological partnership as well as opportunities to boost two-way trade, India’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

New Zealand’s trade and investment minister, Todd McClay, met with Indian counterpart Piyush Goyal last week. They discussed key aspects of an FTA and explored ways to advance the negotiations for mutual benefits, Goyal said on X.

EU Trade and Economic Security Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič also met Goyal last week to review progress on the India-EU free trade agreement and explore ways to resolve issues and advance negotiations.

FILE - Laborers carry narrow planks of wood to be used for building a pavilion for the Make In India summit in Mumbai, India, Feb. 9, 2016. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File)

FILE - High ankle boots for women for export are kept for packing at Dawar leather footwear manufacturing unit in Agra, India, Aug. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)

FILE - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida sign agreements in New Delhi, March 19, 2022. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)