The Roman salute is conditionally allowed in Italy and outright banned in Germany. German chancellor Olaf Scholz responded to Musk's gesture by saying, "We have the freedom of speech in Europe and in Germany," he said, "what we do not accept is if this is supporting extreme right positions."

A gesture made by Elon Musk while he was speaking at President Donald Trump's Inauguration Parade Monday evening caused a stir online, with some people noting that the tech billionaire's straight-arm movement looked like a Nazi salute.