Poland poses as much of a threat to Germany as Russia, a leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has argued, deepening a dispute within the party over its stance on Moscow.
That remark by AfD co-leader Tino Chrupalla was challenged by fellow leader Alice Weidel and comes amid a row over attendance of AfD politicians at a conference in the Russian seaside resort of Sochi.
Weidel said she “can’t imagine what one would do there, to be honest, I would have stayed here”. But Chrupalla supported the visit, approved by the party foreign affairs committee and paid for by the taxpayer, “as important to avoid a war, a bigger war in Europe”.
In a television talkshow, the East German-born Chrupalla defended the Russian president Vladimir Putin saying, “he’s done nothing to me”.
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“I see no threat at the moment from Russia, Putin hasn’t even threatened to attack us with a nuclear weapon,” he said, insisting that many countries could be viewed as a danger to German interests.
Pressed, Chrupalla pointed to Warsaw’s recent refusal to extradite to Germany a suspect accused of blowing up the Nordstream gas pipeline: “Of course Poland can be a danger for us.”
His remarks – popular with East German-socialised voters – pose a problem for western AfD politicians and Alice Weidel.
In recent months she has moved the party closer to the Trump administration and has criticised Moscow’s foot-dragging in diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
AfD defence spokesman Rüdiger Lucassen was equally critical of Chrupalla’s “abstruse theories”, noting Russia had shown “no readiness to move in the direction of peace”.
“Talking about Poland as a danger has nothing to do with politics,” he told the Bild tabloid. “Poland is a Nato partner, our respective armed forces are closely integrated.”
While Weidel has criticised Russian violation of its neighbours’ air space, Chrupalla insists there is no evidence that drones used were Russian.
Germany’s ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU) has pounced on the row as proof that Chrupalla is a “Russian Trojan horse”. However, political analysts see the row as a deliberate party strategy to keep two disparate support groups happy.
A new poll released on Thursday, but taken last week before Russia row, has seen the AfD reach a new high of 26 per cent.
[ Far-right AfD’s vote triples in elections in German bellwether stateOpens in new window ]
The ARD public television poll places the governing centre-right CDU one point ahead in first place with 27 per cent support while its coalition partner, the centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) is on 14 per cent.
Taken together, the coalition parties have lost four points since election day last February while the AfD has gained five points. Beyond numbers, the poll offered deeper insights into the AfD’s supporters and motivations.
Disappointment with other parties’ policies is the most common reason for backing the AfD, given by 60 per cent of all voters and 39 per cent of AfD voters. The same poll suggested that the far-right party has almost exhausted its natural potential – the number of supporters of other parties who could imagine also voting for it.
AfD voter potential, according to the poll, lies at 28 per cent, two points above its current support. The same analysis suggested the CDU’s potential support is, at 50 per cent, nearly double its current popularity.
Asked whether other political parties should change their current strategy and co-operate with the AfD, 40 per cent backed ongoing exclusion, 25 favoured full co-operation while 30 per cent were open to alliances on a case-by-case basis.
Readiness to co-operate rises to 46 per cent among CDU voters, raising pressure on party leader Friedrich Merz. He insists there will be no such co-operation while he while he is chancellor.
