Partnering with Germany’s far-left pro-Putin party could keep AfD out

Christian Democrats rule out coalition with far-Right party but now need populist group BSW to build a stable majority

German parties attempting to block the far-Right AfD from power may have to partner with a Russia-friendly party that blames Nato for the war in Ukraine.
Bündnis Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW), a populist group that combines Left and Right-wing demands including an end to weapons supplies to Ukraine, says it is ready for talks on forming new governments in Saxony and Thuringia.
The far-right AfD won the vote in Thuringia, securing 33 per cent of ballots, and came second in Saxony on 31, just behind the centre-right Christian Democrats (CDU) on 32 per cent.
But mainstream parties refuse to work with the anti-immigrant outfit, leaving the centre-right Christian Democrats now dependent on the BSW for building stable majorities.
The BSW set out their stall on Monday, saying they will only work with parties willing to oppose arms supplies to Kyiv and the planned positioning of US mid-range missiles on German soil.
Any such opposition would be purely symbolic as state governments have no say in Germany’s foreign policy.
However, party founder Sahra Wagenkencht said that “of course state governments need to raise their voices”.
Victory in Thuringia was the first time the AfD won the most votes at a state election since its founding eleven years ago.
The local party is led by Björn Höcke, an extremist who has used Nazi slogans in speeches and advocates reducing the country’s population by 20 million by pressuring Muslims to leave.
The CDU has refused to contemplate any sort of cooperation with the AfD, with party leader Friedrich Merz pledging a “firewall” against the hard-Right party.
However, critics inside the CDU have said that the “firewall” policy exposes them to blackmail by parties on the Left.
Commenting on Monday, chancellor Olaf Scholz said: “All democratic parties are now called upon to form stable governments without Right-wing extremists.”
Mr Scholz’ Social Democrats won less than 10 per cent in both states, results the chancellor described as “very bitter”.
The remaining parties in his unpopular coalition suffered even worse results.
The Greens failed to win any seats in Thuringia and the liberal Free Democrats were wiped out in both states.
In an initial response, CDU leader Friedrich Merz made no mention of possible coalitions but described the results as a “brutal fiasco” for Mr Scholz.
With the centre largely hollowed out, majority coalitions in both Saxony and Thuringia are now only possible with the BSW.
A Left-wing splinter party that emerged at the start of the year, the BSW won 16 per cent of the vote in Thuringia and 12 per cent in Saxony.
Founded by Ms Wagenknecht, a charismatic former communist, the party has sought to position itself as a voice of common sense via campaigns against gender-sensitive language and net zero policies.
However, critics accuse the party of pandering to dictators due to their advocacy of peace with the Kremlin.
BSW campaign posters demanded “diplomacy instead of warmongering,” while Ms Wagenknecht has repeatedly sought to blame Nato for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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She has also accused Israel of pursuing a “war of annihilation in Gaza”, a loaded term due to its use for describing Nazi war crimes in eastern Europe.
Reacting to the results on Monday, the country’s Jewish community called it a “sucker punch of historic dimensions” for the country’s democracy.
Joseph Schuster, head of the Council of Jews, described the AfD as “extremists” and said that “what we know of the leadership of the BSW doesn’t bode well for the future.”