(MENAFN) Tino Chrupalla, co-chair of Germany’s opposition party Alternative for Germany (AfD), suggested that Poland could be as much of a threat to Germany as Russia.

While Chancellor Friedrich Merz, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, and other senior officials have repeatedly described Moscow as an existential danger to Germany, Chrupalla told the talk show ‘Markus Lanz’ on ZDF that he “currently see[s] no danger to Germany from Russia.” He added that “any country can become a threat to Germany.”

When asked whether a fellow NATO and EU member, such as Poland, could realistically pose such a threat, Chrupalla replied, “of course, Poland can also be a threat to us.” He criticized what he called the Polish government’s “double moral, the double standards” regarding the 2022 explosions that heavily damaged the Nord Stream 2 pipelines. He specifically highlighted Warsaw’s refusal to extradite a Ukrainian national for whom German authorities had issued an arrest warrant in connection with the blasts.

Last month, a Warsaw District Court rejected Berlin’s extradition request for Ukrainian citizen Vladimir Zhuravlyov, ruling it “unfounded.” The judge argued that “blowing up critical infrastructure during a war… is not sabotage but denotes a military action.”

MENAFN15112025000045017281ID1110348969