CDU rules out cooperation with AfD over EU exit plans and Russia ties: Merz cites security threats

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CDU rules out cooperation with AfD over EU exit plans and Russia ties: Merz cites security threats
German chancellor rules out cooperation with far-right AfD ahead of Saxony-Anhalt vote
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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Friday that the center-right CDU will not cooperate with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) due to fundamental disagreements on domestic and foreign policy, according to an interview with RTL. Merz said the AfD seeks to destroy the CDU, dismantle Germany’s political system, exit the eurozone and Schengen Area, and leave the EU single market.
Merz also accused the AfD of threatening Germany’s internal and external security, citing its proximity to Russia, frequent visits to the Russian embassy in Berlin, and close ties with President Vladimir Putin. He added that the AfD opposes support for Ukraine. While the CDU already interacts with the AfD at the municipal level, Merz ruled out forming a coalition government with the party, stating, “Cooperation with this party and its functionaries is impossible for my party.”
The AfD, led by Alice Weidel, has previously stated that if it enters the federal government, it will push for Germany’s exit from the eurozone and stricter controls on migration. The party is polling strongly in eastern German states, including Saxony-Anhalt, where it leads in surveys ahead of the Sept. 6 state election. Baden-Württemberg’s Green Party Premier Cem Özdemir warned that an AfD-led government in Saxony-Anhalt could increase Russian influence, saying, “I want Saxony-Anhalt to remain Saxony-Anhalt and Magdeburg not to become a suburb of Moscow.”
Özdemir and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius have called for a ban on parts of the AfD, particularly its most radical state branches in eastern Germany. The party has faced criticism for its ties to far-right groups, including former members of the now-banned HDJ and the Identitarian Movement, despite official distancing efforts. In Magdeburg, migrants and migrant-led businesses staged a strike on Wednesday to protest the AfD’s platform, which includes proposals to abolish the constitutional right to asylum, create separate classes for refugee children, and launch a deportation offensive. The party’s program also uses language describing migrants as “culturally alien” and “low-productivity immigrants.”
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