Latest news with #AlternativeforGermany
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
German chancellor to travel to US to meet with Trump
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will travel to Washington next week for his first visit since taking office, where he is scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump. Source: Politico, a Brussels-based politics and policy news organisation, citing the German government press service, as reported by European Pravda Details: Merz will travel to the US on 4 May for his first visit under the new German government. His meeting with Trump is set for Thursday 5 June, followed by a joint press conference. At the meeting with Trump, they will discuss the Russo-Ukrainian war, the situation in the Middle East and trade issues. Background: Merz has repeatedly engaged in public disputes with the US administration, particularly after criticism from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance regarding the classification of the far-right Alternative for Germany party as right-wing extremist. Merz stressed that neither Germany nor he personally interfered in the US election campaign or supported any candidate, and he expects the same attitude from the American administration. This week, the German chancellor stated that Europe is ready to fight for its fundamental values – freedom and democracy – thus responding to repeated criticism of the EU by the Trump administration and, in particular, Vice President Vance's infamous speech at the Munich Security Conference. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
DW
3 hours ago
- Politics
- DW
AfD and radical Christians: An alliance of convenience? – DW – 05/31/2025
The radical right in Germany, Europe and the US portrays itself as the defender of the Christian West against Islam. But religion is not really at the heart of this conflict. "What's your name?" asked Alice Weidel of the young blond man who had just approached the co-leader of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party for an interview. "LE-O-NARD JÄ-GER is my name," Jäger, wearing a big black jacket over a white shirt, answered boldly. His hair was neatly combed back. "Perhaps you know me," he said. "I was on the trip to the US where we met Donald Trump!" Weidel smiled in a friendly but reserved way. In January, the far-right AfD held its national party congress in Riesa, in the eastern German state of Saxony. For Weidel, the congress wrapped up with a marathon of interviews. TV networks and newspapers wanted to know: Has the AfD become more radical? How far-right has the party become? But Weidel also made sure to set aside plenty of time for right-wing newspapers and YouTubers such as Leonard Jäger. His YouTube channel has half a million subscribers, and his interview with Weidel has been viewed over a million times. "You're always under fire from the media," the young man said, showing his support for the political leader. His interview lasted eight minutes and the main topic was God. Who is Alice Weidel, co-leader of Germany's far-right AfD? To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Alice Weidel on faith and God "Do you believe in God?" was his first question. Weidel launched into a somewhat roundabout answer: She talked about the water, minerals, and metals that make up the human body — about how fascinating she finds the question of God. And she also mentioned being a very introspective person. "I would like to believe, but I think I need a little more time." Jäger's online persona could be defined as defiant cheerfulness, and he often posts videos of himself engaging in debates with people at left-wing demonstrations. He discusses gender issues, the AfD, homosexuality, and God, and often edits his videos to make his critics look ridiculous. He believes that there are only two genders, that leftists want to introduce children to sex at an early age, and that the elites want to ban everything. In addition, Jäger's answer to the world's problems is often Jesus. Although Weidel doesn't not appear to be especially religious, the AfD does ride the wave of traditional Christian culture and values. The party stokes fears about Islam and a general uncertainty about change. YouTuber Leonard Jäger spoke to Alice Weidel about God Image: Ketzer der Neuzeit/Youtube To many, the image of an ideal world of cheerful snowy Christmas celebrations, peaceful churchgoers, and straightforward rules about right and wrong sounds like the solution for dealing with the complexity of the modern world, which is why, observers say, the AfD maintains close ties to Christian traditions. "My partner is Christian, and she is very devout," Weidel told Jäger. "Our children are also being raised as Christians. I think that's very important for laying a solid foundation." However, devout Christians are somewhat of a rarity in the AfD, and Germany's major Christian churches have accused the party of hate and incitement. Moreover, faith doesn't play as big a role in German society as it once did — a trend that is true for Europe as a whole. The AfD strongholds in eastern Germany are traditionally very secular. Exploiting Christian traditions So why the overtures to Christianity? "Because it is compatible with the political mainstream," said Matthias Kortmann, professor at the Technical University of Dortmund, where he specializes in examining the ties between religion and the radical right. "Many people, even those who don't sympathize with the AfD, would still agree that Christianity plays a special role in Germany's history and culture. And the AfD exploits that," Kortmann told DW. Germany's churches get creative about new ways to worship To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Most of the AfD's references to Christian values are made in their attacks on Islam, which they associate with immigration. Ever since hundreds of thousands of refugees from the Middle East began arriving in Germany in 2015, the party has been warning of the downfall of Western civilization and what they call "population replacement." The AfD often claims that other political parties are deliberately flooding Germany with Muslims in order to destroy their own culture. Around 83 million people live in Germany, 25% of whom have some immigrant background. However, the percentage of Muslims remains much lower. According to official figures from 2020, there are approximately 5.5 million Muslims in Germany, only 6.6% of the population. Nevertheless, prominent AfD politicians like Beatrix von Storch argue that Germany is undergoing a "de-Christianization." In an interview with DW, she warned of the "growing influence of Islamic movements on culture, society, and politics, and the shrinking role of Christian values in public discourse." Von Storch is also a devout Catholic. "I see my duties as serving God and humanity, with a responsibility to promote what is good and to do what is right," she said. AfD lawmaker Beatrix von Storch worries about the shrinking role of Christian values in public discourse in Germany Image: Sebastian Kahnert/dpa/picture alliance Punished for transphobia For von Storch, her faith means fighting abortion, the queer community, and, above all, transgenderism. In fact, her transphobic remarks have got her in trouble in the Bundestag. Last year, she was sanctioned for making offensive remarks about the transgender Green Party MP Tessa Ganserer, even after receiving numerous warnings. Bundestag Vice President Katrin Göring-Eckart condemned the heckling as "degrading and disrespectful." According to Kortmann, discussions about gender identity are a classic example of how populists try to capitalize on social uncertainty in the modern world. "This is super easy to exploit: Many people are already feeling insecure, and they say, 'now they're also taking away the two-gender system, which was something we could always depend on'," he said. Ultimately, critics see the AfD's relationship with Christianity as instrumental: The party draws on Christian traditions when it suits its agenda. However, the party does not cultivate close ties with the churches. "The AfD must always be careful not to align itself too closely with particular groups that, upon closer inspection, may generate significant skepticism among the general population," said Kortmann. He thinks Christian fundamentalists are the exception in the AfD: "Because these groups are not only against transgenderism, but perhaps also have a very outdated view of women or are against same-sex marriage. All of that is absolutely accepted in society." Piety as a political force: Europe and the US Up until now, the influence of Christianity on politics has generally been one of the major differences between Europe and the US, where evangelical billionaires sometimes use enormous sums of money to shape politics in the name of God. Many of them support the radical right surrounding Donald Trump. But according to Philipp Greifenstein, this phenomenon is now also spreading to Europe. Greifenstein is editor of the German online magazine Die Eule, which covers religious politics, the church, and theology. "Right-wing or far-right influencers are using religion as a way to downplay their own views and to curry favor with the evangelical movement in the US," Greifenstein told DW. "Financial reasons definitely play a role here, because this US movement has a lot of money at its disposal." Greifenstein argues that many Christian influencers are more impressed by US dollars than by the evangelical message. "I don't get the impression that Leonard Jäger wants to promote Christ. It's all about expanding reach." That is a goal that Jäger certainly shares with Alice Weidel and the AfD. This article was originally written in German. While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter, Berlin Briefing.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
German far-right leader Weidel says Orbán is 'beacon of freedom'
Alice Weidel, co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, on Friday praised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as a "beacon of freedom" during a conference held in Budapest. Addressing her audience in English, Weidel said: "The wind of change is blowing." Referring to a decision by Germany's domestic intelligence agency to classify her party, which took second place in the February elections, as extremist, Weidel said: "They spy on the opposition, to denounce the AfD as an enemy of the constitution, fabricating a pretext for outlawing our party." Weidel said to loud applause from the audience that moves to have the AfD banned by the German courts would not prevail. The intelligence agency has said it will refrain from classifying the AfD as "confirmed right-wing extremist" until a Cologne civil court has ruled on an urgent application from the party. The annual gathering in Budapest is linked to the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in the United States. Orbán uses the event to promote networking between international right-wing organizations. A common thread is a favourable attitude towards Russia under President Vladimir Putin. This year the conference drew attendances from Herbert Kickl, head of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze. US President Donald Trump sent greetings by video.
CNBC
2 days ago
- Politics
- CNBC
Trump administration emerges as a staunch defender of Germany's far-right AfD
President Donald Trump's administration has emerged as a staunch defender of Alternative for Germany, a political party with Nazi echoes that has risen in popularity — and that German intelligence officials recently classified as a "proven right-wing extremist organization." The party is known by its German initialism, AfD, and it has included leaders who have embraced old Nazi slogans and minimized the atrocities of Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have criticized the German government's efforts to isolate and investigate AfD, arguing that such actions amount to undemocratic persecution of a rival political group. "It's one thing to say that a particular set of views is gross ... or somehow outside the Overton window, outside the bounds of reasonable discourse," Vance said in an interview last week in Rome, where he attended Pope Leo XIV's inaugural Mass. "I think that it is very, very dangerous to use the neutral institutions of state — the military, the police forces ... the intel services — to try to delegitimize another competing political party. I think that's especially true when that political party just got second in an election and is, depending on which poll you believe, either the [most] popular or the second-most popular party." Meanwhile, billionaire Elon Musk, a Trump confidant who has wielded significant White House power, has gone further than Vance and Rubio, having campaigned with AfD ahead of elections in February, when the party finished in second place and further established its popularity. "Only the AfD can save Germany," Musk posted on X, his social media site, in December. The Rubio-led State Department reinforced the Trump administration's line Tuesday. In a post on Substack, Samuel Samson, a senior adviser in the department's Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, wrote that the German government "has established elaborate systems to monitor and censor online speech under the guise of combating disinformation and preventing offense." Samson specifically cited the recent decision to label AfD as extremist. He also raised concerns about the treatment of far-right parties and leaders in other European countries, including Marine Le Pen, whose recent embezzlement conviction in France could prevent her from running for president in a 2027 race she had been favored to win. "Americans are familiar with these tactics. Indeed, a similar strategy of censorship, demonization, and bureaucratic weaponization was utilized against President Trump and his supporters," Samson wrote. "What this reveals is that the global liberal project is not enabling the flourishing of democracy. Rather, it is trampling democracy, and Western heritage along with it, in the name of a decadent governing class afraid of its own people." Samson added that "Europe's democratic backsliding not only impacts European citizens but increasingly affects American security and economic ties, along with the free speech rights of American citizens and companies." "Our hope," he continued, "is that both Europe and the United States can recommit to our Western heritage, and that European nations will end the weaponization of government against those seeking to defend it." Vance emphasized similar themes in a speech in February at the Munich Security Conference, where he chastised German leaders for, among other things, refusing to include AfD in the country's governing coalition despite its electoral gains. While he was in Germany, Vance met with Friedrich Merz, now the chancellor, and with Alice Weidel, a co-chair of the AfD. An AfD spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. The party has long denied the charge that it is an extremist group, and it sued Germany's Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution over the intelligence agency's recent classification. A spokesperson for the agency, citing the lawsuit, declined to comment. During last week's interview, Vance emphasized that he has not endorsed AfD or encouraged Germans to support it. He described his and Rubio's advocacy as a matter of democratic principles. Trump's first campaign for president in 2016 fed on chants by his supporters to "lock her up!" — a reference to his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, who had not been charged with any crime. More recently, he and his allies accused former President Joe Biden, who beat Trump in his 2020 re-election bid, of weaponizing the Justice Department against Trump and other Republicans. The Trump administration launched an investigation this month of former FBI Director James Comey, a Trump critic who had shared on social media a photo of seashells arranged to spell out "8647." Trump allies interpreted the message as an assassination threat, noting that "86" can be a slang term for getting rid of something and that Trump is the 47th president. Trump's director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, has called for Comey to be imprisoned over the post. But the number 86 does not always have violent connotations; it's use in the hospitality industry can refer to removing or refusing service to a customer. Asked how his and Rubio's concerns square with such Trump administration actions and rhetoric, Vance argued that there is a "reasonable" question about whether Comey had advocated for Trump's assassination. "I'm a pretty big believer in free speech," Vance said. "But I don't think that saying you should kill Donald Trump is an acceptable part of public debate. Everybody's going to draw their line. I think where I draw the line is encouraging violence against political opponents. If there's a determination that Comey encouraged violence against a political opponent, then that's a problem. And if there's a determination that he didn't, then that's a different question." While Vance has not endorsed AfD, he described a pro-AfD piece Musk wrote in December as "interesting." "Also interesting; American media slanders AfD as Nazi-lite," Vance wrote in his Jan. 2 social media post that called attention to Musk's piece. "But AfD is most popular in the same areas of Germany that were most resistant to the Nazis." AfD was founded in 2013, its early messaging geared toward anti-European Union voters. In subsequent years, the party became known for its strident anti-immigrant rhetoric. In 2017, an AfD ad criticized as Islamophobic asked: "Burkas? We prefer bikinis." Another, featuring the image of a pregnant woman, asked: "New Germans? We'll make them ourselves." The party has grown in popularity, coinciding with a rise of right-wing voter sentiment across the United States and Europe. Last year, AfD became the first far-right party to win a state election in Germany since the Nazis. Meanwhile, links and comparisons between AfD and the Nazis have been inescapable. At an AfD rally in 2017, attendees chanted that they would "build a subway" to Auschwitz for their political opponents. A founding AfD member, Alexander Gauland, once described the Nazi era as a mere "speck" of bird excrement in German history. A party leader, Björne Höcke, has twice been found guilty by a German court of purposefully employing Nazi rhetoric. (He has appealed the rulings.) Another AfD politician, Maximilian Krah, resigned his party leadership post under pressure and suspended campaign activities last year after he said the SS, the Nazis' main paramilitary force, were "not all criminals." When Musk appeared virtually at an AfD campaign event in January, he leaned into a talking point consistent with the party's desire to move beyond the guilt over Nazi-era atrocities, lamenting that "there is too much focus on past guilt." The same week, Musk faced criticism after he offered a gesture many found similar to a Nazi salute at a Trump rally in Washington. In its designation of AfD as an extremist organization on May 2, the German intelligence agency asserted that the party "aims to exclude certain population groups from equal participation in society." AfD also does not consider German nationals with histories of migration from Muslim countries as equal to German people, the agency added at the time. The report drew a quick rebuke from Rubio, who is also Trump's national security adviser. "Germany just gave its spy agency new powers to surveil the opposition," Rubio wrote on X. "That's not democracy — it's tyranny in disguise." Vance then piggybacked on Rubio's post with a Cold War analogy. "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," he wrote. "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." Vance contended in last week's interview that holding down a rival political party because of its beliefs allows its beliefs to "take on an almost mystical power" by removing them from the public dialogue. "I don't like Nazism, and I don't like people who are sympathetic with Nazis," Vance said. "But I think the way to beat back against it is to debate it and defeat it and not believe that you can, kind of, like, bury this thing underground, because you can't."
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Hungary's Orbán says Trump offers 'hope' at right-wing conference
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán described US President Donald Trump's presidency as a "true civilizational turning point" at an international conference of right-wing populists and Russia supporters on Thursday. "We will not drown in a sea of 'wokeness,' migrants will not overrun us, Donald Trump has given [the world] back hope for a normal life and for peace," Orbán said in his opening speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Budapest. Trump sent a welcome video to the event, recorded in the Oval Office. In it, he praised Orbán as "a great man who is highly respected by everybody." "He has done a brilliant job of leading, and he is a very special person," Trump added. Other speakers at the two-day conference include the leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany, Alice Weidel, the head of the far-right Freedom Party of Austria, Herbert Kickl, Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobachidze. Orbán has been ruling Hungary with increasingly authoritarian methods since 2010. He has repeatedly advocated watering down EU sanctions on Moscow and has obstructed the bloc's support of Ukraine in its defence against Russia's full-scale invasion.e
