Biden says Elon Musk’s relationships with foreign countries 'worthy of being looked at'

Biden was asked at a news conference Wednesday about Musk's purchase of Twitter.

WASHINGTON — Asked whether Elon Musk posed a threat to national security, President Joe Biden said Wednesday that the billionaire’s “relationships with other countries is worthy of being looked at.”

“I think that Elon Musk’s cooperation and/or technical relationships with other countries is worthy of being looked at,” Biden told reporters at the White House.

“Whether or not he is doing anything inappropriate — I’m not suggesting that — I’m suggesting it’s worth being looked at. And that’s all I’ll say,” he continued.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and the new owner of Twitter, has significant business interests in China.

China is Tesla’s second-largest market and the company produces around half its cars in China-based factories. Musk has been criticized for being overly friendly with China’s ruling Communist Party

Some people have raised concerns that Musk’s ties to China could color the way he runs Twitter, such as hesitating to remove Chinese government propaganda or state-sponsored misinformation campaigns out of concern that it could negatively affect his business relationship with Beijing. In October, he proposed that Taiwan became "a special administrative zone" of China, an idea that was praised in China but not by Taiwan.

Musk’s relationship with Saudi Arabia has also come under scrutiny. Last month, Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding Co. and the private office of Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said they would help Musk finance his purchase of Twitter by rolling over their existing stake worth about $1.89 billion, CNBC reported.

“Together all the way,” Prince Alwaleed tweeted.