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AfD German Party Gains MSC Access
(MENAFN) Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) reportedly leveraged its connections with the US administration to secure an invitation to this year’s Munich Security Conference (MSC), according to statements from one of the party’s members.
The AfD, known for its anti-immigrant stance and calls for Berlin to halt military aid to Ukraine, had been excluded from the MSC for three years after Germany’s interior ministry labeled the party a “right-wing extremist” organization. The ban was lifted in December under interim MSC head Wolfgang Ischinger.
Heinrich Koch, one of the three AfD parliamentarians who received invitations, said the party succeeded in getting invited “because we made an impression with our contacts to the Americans.”
The Trump administration has previously criticized Germany’s so-called “firewall against the far-right” strategy, which mainstream parties have used to prevent the AfD from entering government despite its rising popularity. In a notable address last year, US Vice President J.D. Vance told the conference, “there is no room for firewalls.”
Koch added that he informed MSC officials the party could attend this year as part of the US delegation.
The MSC, however, denied that US pressure influenced the decision. Ischinger told reports that the organizers acted based on “our own conscience” to “reflect the current reality.” He argued, “It would be very difficult for the Munich Security Conference… to justify categorically excluding the largest German opposition party,” calling the inclusion “the right thing” to do.
Meanwhile, German authorities have continued monitoring the AfD closely. In May 2025, the domestic security agency (BfV) officially classified it as an “extremist” organization, allowing for enhanced surveillance of the party’s activities.
Despite scrutiny, the AfD remained the country’s most popular opposition party in 2025, securing 20% of the vote in February elections and finishing second to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU bloc. Recent polling indicates its support has grown to approximately 25%, matching that of the CDU/CSU.
The AfD, known for its anti-immigrant stance and calls for Berlin to halt military aid to Ukraine, had been excluded from the MSC for three years after Germany’s interior ministry labeled the party a “right-wing extremist” organization. The ban was lifted in December under interim MSC head Wolfgang Ischinger.
Heinrich Koch, one of the three AfD parliamentarians who received invitations, said the party succeeded in getting invited “because we made an impression with our contacts to the Americans.”
The Trump administration has previously criticized Germany’s so-called “firewall against the far-right” strategy, which mainstream parties have used to prevent the AfD from entering government despite its rising popularity. In a notable address last year, US Vice President J.D. Vance told the conference, “there is no room for firewalls.”
Koch added that he informed MSC officials the party could attend this year as part of the US delegation.
The MSC, however, denied that US pressure influenced the decision. Ischinger told reports that the organizers acted based on “our own conscience” to “reflect the current reality.” He argued, “It would be very difficult for the Munich Security Conference… to justify categorically excluding the largest German opposition party,” calling the inclusion “the right thing” to do.
Meanwhile, German authorities have continued monitoring the AfD closely. In May 2025, the domestic security agency (BfV) officially classified it as an “extremist” organization, allowing for enhanced surveillance of the party’s activities.
Despite scrutiny, the AfD remained the country’s most popular opposition party in 2025, securing 20% of the vote in February elections and finishing second to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s CDU/CSU bloc. Recent polling indicates its support has grown to approximately 25%, matching that of the CDU/CSU.
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