Rome: Italian President Sergio Mattarella criticized Elon Musk on Wednesday for commenting on Italian court decisions that have impede the government’s efforts to process some asylum seekers in Albania.
Musk, who is set to play a key advisory role in Donald Trump ’s new administration, posted on X Tuesday, stating, “these judges need to go.” He was commenting on the recent Italian court ruling that opposed right-wing Premier Giorgia Meloni’s immigration deal with Albania.
“This is unacceptable. Do the people of Italy live in a democracy or does an unelected autocracy make the decisions?”, Musk wrote in his next post on X.
Musk’s tweets addressed a Rome court’s decision to reject a formal request to detain seven migrants rescued at sea and sent to Albania for processing.
Monday’s ruling, which led to the men being brought to Italy for processing, marked the second judicial setback for Meloni’s plan to outsource the processing of some male asylum-seekers to Albania.
Mattarella didn’t mention Musk by name but, in an unusually sharp statement, made it clear on Wednesday that he was addressing him. Italy’s president called for respect for Italy’s sovereignty, particularly from upcoming public officials.
“Italy is a great democratic country and … knows how to take care of itself while respecting its Constitution,” Mattarella said in a statement issued by his spokesperson.
“Anyone, particularly if as announced is about to assume an important role of government in a friendly and allied country, must respect its sovereignty and cannot attribute to himself the task of imparting prescriptions,” the spokesperson said.
Trump announced on Tuesday that Musk will be one of his key influencers, would lead a new Department of Government Efficiency, an independent advisory panel aimed at eliminating waste and fraud.
Musk, a supporter of Meloni, has met with her in Rome several times and joined her at an awards ceremony during the U.N. General Assembly in September. Their photos together sparked media attention, prompting Musk to tweet, “We are not dating,” to quell speculation.
The court rulings have angered Meloni’s far-right-led government, which has been seeking ways to alleviate the strain of migrant arrivals in Italy. The government had positioned the opening of Albanian processing centers as a key part of its immigration crackdown, aiming to use them as both a deterrent and a potential model for Europe.
The Ruling
In both cases, Italian courts referred the matter to the EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg to determine whether the migrants’ countries of origin are considered safe for repatriation. It is unclear when the European court will issue a ruling.
As a result of the Rome court decisions, no migrants have yet been processed at the Albanian centers, which are set to cost Italy 670 million euros ($730 million) over five years to build and operate.
The Italian opposition argues that the money would be better spent on strengthening Italian-operated migrant processing centers, while human rights groups claim outsourcing asylum processing violates international law.
The centers, which opened in October after a delay due to soil issues at one location, are operated by Italy and fall under Italian jurisdiction, with Albanian guards providing external security.
(with agency input)
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