Elon Musk To Give Nationalist NATO Leader a Global Citizenship Award

Elon Musk is set to introduce the Italian Prime Minister as she receives a global citizenship award in New York on Monday, an award that celebrates those who have made “exceptional and distinctive contributions to the strengthening of the trans-Atlantic relationship.”
The Atlantic Council’s awards this year will be given to Giorgia Meloni, as well as the President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo, the Prime Minister of Greece Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and South Korean conglomerate CJ Group’s vice chairwoman Miky Lee.
The ceremony and awards dinner will be held in New York City on September 23, not at its usual location, Cipriani, on Wall Street, but instead at the Ziegfeld Ballroom, according to Politico.
The Tesla CEO will be joined by President William Samoei Ruto of the Republic of Kenya, Pfizer CEO Dr. Albert Bourla, and Paramount Global chair Shari Redstone.
Those winning the citizenship award “select their introducers based on their personal and professional relationships,” the Atlantic Council explained, meaning Meloni will have chosen Musk to introduce her as she receives her award.
Newsweek has contacted the press offices of Musk and Meloni via email for comment.
The pair met previously when Meloni’s Brothers of Italy Party hosted an event in December last year at her official residence, at which Musk gave a speech
During his speech at the event, he shared Meloni’s concerns about the low birthrates in Italy and unchecked migration, according to Singaporean newspaper The Business Times.
The decision to nominate the nationalist leader and for her to be introduced by Musk ruffled some feathers within the council, according to Politico, which shared that anonymous staffers disapproved of Meloni’s past friendliness with Russia and her party’s anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric.
Staffers also anonymously told NatSec Daily that disapproval turned to outrage when Meloni requested Musk to introduce her, Politico reported.
One council staff member reportedly told NatSec Daily that some staffers felt that the Meloni and Musk duo wasn’t “in any way a fit for what the council tries to project.”
When Newsweek contacted the Atlantic Council via email for comment in relation to the Politico report, a spokesperson confirmed that some staff did have an issue with Musk and Meloni’s involvement in the proceedings.
However, the spokesperson shared that the council still “honored” the request of Meloni to have Musk introduce her, “as is our tradition.”
They added, “The Atlantic Council engages with a wide array of influential international actors in the pursuit of its mission. Our focus is on advancing global cooperation so as to better navigate complex international issues.”
A statement from Fred Kempe, president and CEO of the Atlantic Council, was also shared with Newsweek. He said, “We are a non-partisan organization that has it in our DNA to discuss hard issues out loud and hear from those we don’t always agree with, whether staff or world leaders.
“This diversity of thought strengthens our work. The Atlantic Council has always embraced such conversations, and we will continue to do so in our efforts to build a more secure and prosperous world.”
Meloni is to be recognized for her “groundbreaking role as Italy’s first female prime minister,” her “strong support of the European Union and the trans-Atlantic alliance,” and “her 2024 chairmanship of the G7,” according to the Atlantic Council.
The Italian prime minister is widely known for her policies including her “anti-rave” stance, cracking down on mass parties, her anti-immigration policies such as the naval blockade, proposed before her election, in the Mediterranean Sea to prevent crossings, and blocking bills calling violence toward the LGBTQ+ community a hate crime.
Others who have previously been chosen as nominees of the award include former Israeli President Shimon Peres, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde, Jordanian Queen Rania al Abdullah, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Academy Award winners Forest Whitaker and Robert De Niro, and many others.
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