The leader of the Christian Democrats in Germany, Friedrich Merz, insisted yesterday that the conservative bloc, currently in opposition, does not want any deal with the far-right AfD party, on the rise in the latest polls and subject to a sanitary cordon for the rest of formations when forging government coalitions at all levels. “German conservatives will never agree with the extreme right,” Merz said in a meeting in Berlin with foreign correspondents, alluding to a joint conviction of his party, the Christian Democrat CDU, and his historical partner, the Christian Social CSU of Bavaria. .
Friedrich Merz, 67, who has been in command of the CDU since January 2022, is repeatedly confronted with this question, because the polls show a growth of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the heat of discontent with the current government of coalition of social democrats, environmentalists and liberals of Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
After several weeks in which various polls have awarded the AfD between 19% and 20%, always in second place but sometimes alone and other times on a par with Scholz’s social democrat SPD, the latest poll gives it second place with an even higher percentage. There is still time for the federal elections – they are in the fall of 2025 – but if they are held this Sunday, the extreme right would obtain 21%, far surpassing the SPD (18%). In all the polls the conservative CDU/CSU block appears in first place, with around 27%.
“We have made it very clear that for us conservatives there is nothing to talk about with the AfD; It is true that it is a strategic dilemma for my party, but the incompatibility of a cooperation is non-negotiable,” Friedrich Merz clarified. This of course is for the AfD a useful argument against the so-called ‘old parties’; the AfD leaders claim that we are all against them and that they are the only ones who tell the truth.”
Friedrich Merz shares the thesis of many German political scientists that the AfD is a protest party, that is, not all of its supporters are far-right but want to express their anger over specific issues. The Christian Democrat leader cited polls according to which up to two thirds of AfD supporters argue their support for rejection of issues that, in their opinion, the government and the traditional parties do not resolve, and mention immigration as the main one.
“We have to do something to counter this; our task is to solve the problems, and then the extreme right will stop growing; I have offered the current government several times that we seek common solutions for issues such as refugee policy, without being heard,” said the conservative leader.
Asked by La Vanguardia about the possibility that, after the 23-J elections in Spain, the Popular Party will agree to a government coalition with Vox, in an ideological scheme that Merz rejects for Germany, the Christian Democratic leader preferred not to make public recommendations.
“I follow with great interest the political events in Spain, one of the large member countries of the European Union, a very important country in the European Union, but I am certainly not going to give any public advice on how to form a government in Spain,” he replied. Of course, in the CDU we have contact with our friends from the PP within the European People’s Party, I have spoken with them on several occasions. I am very interested to see how events will unfold after the elections.”
Friedrich Merz then emphasized the historical background of his country. “We have a history determined by a National Socialist party in the 20th century, and this means a special responsibility for Germany; so my opinion regarding Germany is very clear, but I am not going to publicly lecture other countries in Europe about what they have to do and what not to do; That is a free decision of the voters, and also of the parties when they have to agree on coalitions”.
However, the president of the German Christian Democrats made some general reflections. “If in Western countries we want to prevent ultranationalist parties from growing, we have to address those issues that remain in society; the AfD began to grow with the arrival in Germany of thousands of asylum seekers from 2015 – recalled Merz -. We conservatives have been very clear since then: a situation like that of 2015 cannot be repeated; immigration must be controlled.”
Friedrich Merz then specified that this approach does not concern the Ukrainians, who have a special legal status granted by the EU due to the Russian war against Ukraine. And on the rise of the AfD he stressed: “Let’s put the current public opinion situation into perspective; I don’t want to downplay it, but it is a problem that is not completely unknown”.
