German spy agency brands main opposition party as ‘extremist'. The US is not happy

The Age

03-05-2025

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Germany should reverse course on branding the AfD as extremist, calling it 'tyranny in disguise'.
Billionaire Elon Musk – who threw his support behind the party ahead of February elections – warned against banning it, saying it would be 'an extreme attack on democracy'.
In February, US Vice President J.D. Vance stunned attendees at a security conference in Munich where he said the biggest threat to Europe was not from Russia or China, but what he called 'the enemy within', including the sidelining of political parties considered extremist.
In what was seen as an extraordinary intervention into domestic politics, Vance singled out his German hosts. He told them to drop their objections to working with a party that has often revelled in banned Nazi slogans. While he did not mention the AfD by name, he made a direct reference to the long-standing agreement – which he called 'firewalls' – by mainstream German politicians to freeze out the group.
'The AfD is the most popular party in Germany, and by far the most representative of East Germany. Now the bureaucrats try to destroy it,' Vance posted on Twitter after the news broke. 'The West tore down the Berlin Wall together. And it has been rebuilt – not by the Soviets or the Russians, but by the German establishment.'
The branding follows other setbacks the far-right across Europe has suffered in recent months as it seeks to translate surging support into power. They include a ban on France's Marine Le Pen contesting the 2027 presidential election after her embezzlement conviction, and the postponement of Romania's presidential vote after a far-right candidate won the first round.
'VERY SERIOUS. After France and Romania, another theft of Democracy?' wrote Matteo Salvini, deputy Italian prime minister and leader of far-right party The League, on X.
German parliament could now attempt to limit or halt public funding for the AfD – but for that authorities would need evidence that the party is explicitly out to undermine or even overthrow German democracy.
Meanwhile, civil servants who belong to an organisation classified as 'extremist' face possible dismissal, depending on their role within the entity, according to Germany's interior ministry.
Loading
The stigma could also make it harder for the AfD, which currently tops several polls and is Germany's most successful far-right party since World War II, to attract members.
The BfV decision comes days before conservative leader Friedrich Merz is due to be sworn in as Germany's new chancellor and amid a heated debate within his party over how to deal with the AfD in the new Bundestag, or lower house of parliament.
The AfD won a record number of seats in the national election in February, coming in second behind Merz's conservatives, which in theory entitled it to chair several key parliamentary committees. The designation could be used justify blocking AfD attempts to lead committees.