Relations between AfD politicians and China and Russia are close. Therefore, it is implausible to pretend that we have no idea when it comes to suspicions of espionage.

AfD's self-proclaimed “patriots” maintain ties to authoritarian regimes Photo: Frank Hoermann/Sven Simon/imago

At first glance it may seem confusing that the self-proclaimed “patriots” of the AfD are presumably bought by Russia or China and are campaigning for apparently “foreign” or even “foreign” interests. In fact, it is logical: the far-right party, like most authoritarian formations, tries to fight against the open society by all possible means. He wants to abolish Western liberality with all its minority rights and undermine human rights and democracy.

It is currently particularly easy to find allies for this in Russia and China. The arrest of Jian G., an employee of AfD's leading candidate Maximilian Krah, on suspicion of espionage for China in a particularly serious case is just the tip of the iceberg. Krah's actions also speak for themselves: He defended China's interests in parliament, called reports about internment camps for Uyghurs “scary stories,” and spread Putin propaganda through Russian disinformation platforms in the war. hybrid against the Federal Republic of Germany and the EU.

Krah himself helped establish networks of Chinese influence, along with his colleague G. In this sense, it is completely incredible that Krah acts ignorantly in the face of his colleague's arrest.

Close ties with authoritarian regimes

Indeed, the AfD party headquarters is one of the many milestones of China's “New Silk Road,” the hegemonic megaproject of the one-party dictatorship. AfD federal presidents also maintain close ties to authoritarian regimes. Tino Chrupalla held at the Russian Embassy during the Ukrainian War and Alice Weidel not only visited Moscow but she also worked for the Bank of China and lived in Beijing. She is celebrated as a political star in Chinese state media. It is not surprising, then, that the AfD openly calls in its European program for “offensive participation” in China's new Silk Road.

All this shows where the path is headed if the AfD also manages to gain power in this country. It would promote an authoritarian restructuring, in the spirit of China and Russia. This should be taken into account especially by those conservatives who are in a long-term (secret) flirtation with the far-right party and would rather form a coalition with the AfD today than tomorrow.