BRUSSELS — The European Commission said it will “make sure” it receives money owed by Elon Musk’s X after the company was fined €120 million for failing to meet transparency rules.

The Commission on Friday said X has breached transparency and deceptive design obligations under the EU’s platforms regulation, the Digital Services Act, and issued the €120 million penalty.

The decision set off a cascade of accusations of censorship from U.S. officials, Musk and his supporters, with some suggesting the company should refuse to pay the fine.

“X will have to pay that fine. The €120 million will have to be paid. We will make sure that we get this money,” Commission Spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters during a daily press briefing, when asked how the EU can ensure that X pays the penalty.

He noted X still has the opportunity to challenge the decision in court. “There are procedural steps to take into account, and any decision taken by the Commission can be challenged in front of the Court of Justice of the European Union,” he said.

Speaking to POLITICO after the briefing, Regnier called for patience: “Let’s not jump the gun. We have just taken a decision and issued a fine to X. The company now has to pay the fine and [has] 90 days to get back to us.”

X has repeatedly gone to court to challenge regulatory decisions it disagrees with. The company has not yet said whether it will appeal Friday’s decision.

X has yet to issue an official company response, with its Global Government Affairs account, which voices the company’s views on regulatory matters, reposting U.S. officials’ views.

Musk on Saturday threatened action against both the EU and unnamed individuals. “The ‘EU’ imposed this crazy fine not just on [X], but also on me personally, which is even more insane!” he wrote on X. “Therefore, it would seem appropriate to apply our response not just to the EU, but also to the individuals who took this action against me.”

The company hasn’t replied to POLITICO’s repeated requests for comment.

Regnier also justified the Commission’s continued use of X as a platform for corporate communications, despite the severity of anti-EU comments posted by Musk over the weekend and the platform’s decision to suspend the Commission’s account for paid advertising.

The EU executive uses 15 social media platforms and hasn’t made a decision to suspend its use of X, Regnier said.

All these platforms are ways to “get in touch to citizens, stakeholders, to do some outreach work, to precisely speak about what we are doing in the EU,” he said.

Statements comparing the EU to Nazi Germany are “part of the freedom of speech that we very much praise in the EU,” which “allows even for the craziest statements that you can imagine,” Chief Spokesperson Paula Pinho said.

The Commission stopped “using paid advertising or any paid services for X” in 2023 and its regular account remains open, Regnier said.

The Commission did not respond to questions as to whether it has heard from U.S. officials directly on the matter since the fine was announced. Regnier said the EU executive remains in touch with the company and that X was informed ahead of the announcement.