Elon Musk was invited by 40 members of the EU parliament who have come together to sign a letter requesting that the EU President invite the Tesla head honcho to speak at the Plenary. The Parliamentarians reportedly want to discuss freedom of speech,

Aschbacher was asked during the briefing about the alliance of President-elect Donald Trump, SpaceX founder Elon Musk and Jared Isaacman, nominated to become the new NASA administrator, and specifically about potential changes to the United States' moon exploration strategy.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says Elon Musk's support for the far-right in Europe is "completely unacceptable."

SpaceX's Starship exploded over the Atlantic Ocean after launching from Texas on Thursday (Jan 16). Debris lit up the sky above Turks and Caicos. (Credit: Greg Munch via TMX)

The European Launcher Challenge has generated tremendous interest and friction among the region’s launch companies. Several plan to log their first flights in the coming months. Arianespace, Europe’s incumbent launch service provider, has warned that internal competition could dilute the ability to keep pace with global rivals.

Although some of Europe's leaders have found favour with the billionaire, others are worried by his interventions.

Italy is in advanced talks with Elon Musk’s SpaceX for a deal to provide secure telecommunications for the nation’s government — the largest such project in Europe, people with knowledge of the matter said Sunday.

Fresh from pouring his money and energies into helping Donald Trump win reelection, Elon Musk has trained his sights on Europe, setting off alarm bells among politicians across the continent. The Tesla and SpaceX chief executive has endorsed the far-right Alternative for Germany,

Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said he could see the two separate European programmes working on new fighter jets and combat air systems being combined in future or at least designed to work together.