Le Pen is still not keen on the AfD
The AfD should stay out. First, they were kicked out of the ID-Fraction of the European Parliament with the Rechtspopulists from Le Pen's RN. Now, Germans cannot participate in Le Pen's new "Patriots for Europe" fraction - they should found their own group.
It's their last option, as others have refused to play along: The AfD is founding its own fraction in the European Parliament. "Europe of Sovereign Nations" is the proposed name, and it will host 28 deputies from nine countries - among them 14 AfD politicians. Others had joined the "Patriots for Europe" fraction on Monday, which represents the third largest group in the EU-Parliament with 84 deputies from 12 countries. The AfD was left out.
The initiator of the "Patriots" is Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Members include Fidesz besides Orban's party, Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National (RN), and the Lega, which is part of the Italian government under Matteo Salvini's leadership. The RN and the Lega reportedly insisted on excluding the AfD.
Without being part of a fraction, the AfD would have remained without funds, positions, and speaking time in the parliament. Until the end of May this year, the AfD was part of the "Identity and Democracy" fraction. They were expelled after Maximilian Krah, their leading candidate for the European elections, downplayed the SS in an interview. Even the far-right from the RN found this unacceptable. Le Pen had been trying to appear moderate during the European elections to avoid alienating moderate voters.
"The AfD would certainly fit perfectly into this group," an AfD spokesperson was quoted as saying by the German Press Agency at the beginning of July. A spokesperson for AfD leader Alice Weidel told ntv on the sidelines of the party congress in Essen, "The AfD cannot join a common fraction with Fidesz at this point in time." However, the new fraction of Fidesz and FPO opens "new opportunities for cooperation with other parties" for the AfD.
Overlap points between Orban, Le Pen and German Right-wing Radicals exist: They hate the EU, oppose military support for Ukraine and maintain good relations with Russia. However, Le Pen has once again snubbed the AfD. The founding of "Sovereign European Nations" cannot be interpreted in any other way - the faction has 70 fewer deputies than "Patriots for Europe" and thus has little power.
Orban burned bridges with the German government to a large extent
The AfD tries to give other reasons in public. AfD leader Weidel said, "Our partners in this alliance are subject to 'political and also foreign policy and foreign economic pressures,' on which we currently have to take note, without being more specific."
The AfD leadership also spread the theory, according to dpa, that the German government is keeping Orban in his role as Hungarian prime minister from cooperating with the AfD. This, in turn, is considered a conspiracy theory by observers.
Orban burned bridges with the German government to a large extent - at least through his "Peace Mission" in Kiev, Beijing and Moscow, where Orban paid an unexpected visit to the Putin-aligned President of Russia, Vladimir Putin. The journey was particularly explosive because Orban made it at the beginning of his EU Council Presidency. The "Peace Mission" was not agreed upon, and Orban thus brought the other European government leaders against himself. It is highly unlikely that the German government now exerts pressure on Orban and could do so, despite having few remaining connections to him. More likely is: The AfD lost out in the right-wing power plays in the EU because it is too openly right-wing radical for Le Pen's party's taste.
- Despite being a part of Viktor Orban's "Patriots for Europe" fraction initially, the AfD was excluded due to controversial comments made by their leading candidate.
- The EU Parliament's rejection of the AfD's participation in Le Pen's "Patriots for Europe" fraction forced them to establish their own group named "Europe of Sovereign Nations."
- Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National (RN), and the Lega are among the members of the "Patriots for Europe" fraction, which is now the third largest group in the EU Parliament.
- The EU politicians from the AfD, despite sharing similar political views with Orban, Le Pen, and other right-wing radicals, were unable to join forces due to their extreme views.
- Viktor Orban's approach to politics, including his controversial trip to Moscow during his EU Council Presidency, has strained relations with the German government, potentially contributing to the AfD's exclusion from the "Patriots for Europe" fraction.
