Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, and former US President Donald Trump have formed an unexpected alliance despite holding fundamentally different views on a central issue: electric vehicles (EVs). While Musk is a pioneer of e-mobility, Trump has repeatedly campaigned against EVs.

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"In recent weeks, however, a subtle truce has developed, explaining how Musk can justify his support for Trump. Trump now emphasizes that he accepts EVs as long as the government does not mandate their purchase. Musk, on the other hand, has reiterated his willingness to forgo government subsidies for EVs.

Abolish the subsidies. It will only help Tesla," Musk tweeted last week in response to criticism from Tesla supporters regarding his new political alliance.

Musk, who has been working for years to push the automotive industry towards electrification, now seems ready to pull up the bridge to the EV future while competitors are still trying to cross it. The risk is that Tesla may be left alone on the EV side in the USA, while other companies go on the defensive, and a broader electric transition could fail.

Trump has used the electrification of cars to attack President Biden, claiming that expensive EVs are being forced upon Americans, which could threaten jobs. "These damn things don't drive far enough and are too expensive," said Trump during a rally near Detroit in September.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stated that it will not impose an EV mandate. However, Republican critics argue that the tightening of emissions standards by the Biden administration effectively requires EVs to make up an increasingly larger share of future car sales.

The politicization of EVs in the past 18 months has hindered sales growth and disrupted the plans of automakers who had previously announced ambitious goals to increase production. Tesla has also been affected by a decline in sales.

While Trump and Musk have been speaking behind the scenes in recent months, the outcome of these conversations is now becoming publicly visible. Last month, Trump changed his tone in Arizona and said, 'I'm a big fan of electric cars, I like Elon.' A few days later, at the Tesla shareholders' meeting, Musk confirmed that they had talked about electric cars.

“I can be persuasive,” Musk said, laughing. He added that many of Trump's friends now own Tesla vehicles and that the former president is a “huge fan” of the Cybertruck.

For Trump, this approach seems to be working. He has gained Musk's full support, along with access to a platform of nearly 200 million followers on X and potentially financial backing for his campaign.

For Musk, it could be as simple as having a friend in the White House who is willing to listen to him, after his relationship with Biden turned into bitterness and accusations. Musk's mother has publicly complained about how poorly she believes her son has been treated by the Democrat.

In 2020, Trump called Musk "one of our great geniuses, and we have to protect our genius." The Republican National Convention highlighted the importance of expanding the commercial space sector in its platform. JD Vance, Trump's vice-presidential candidate, recently said: "Elon Musk is in some ways a throwback to an older generation of American entrepreneurs.

During his speech at the party congress on Thursday, Trump reaffirmed his intention to end the EV policies he dislikes on the first day of his new administration. But he reiterated: "I am for electric cars, they have their uses, but if someone wants to buy a gasoline-powered car... or a hybrid, then they should be able to do so.