Prime Minister Viktor Orbán believes the right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party represents “the future,” and has a programme—ranging from migration to energy policies—that would benefit Hungary.
The conservative PM made his remarks on Wednesday, February 12th following a meeting in Budapest with Alice Weidel, the co-leader and lead candidate of the AfD, which is polling in second place ahead of the German national elections on February 23rd.
Orbán said a strong German economy is crucial for Hungary’s growth, and it is vital for Hungary to have a good relationship with the German government, regardless of its composition—hence his previous distance from the AfD.
That is why I was cautious with the AfD. Until now. Because it is completely obvious now that the AfD is the future. If a ruling elite is unwilling to stand on the side of the people, but a party comes along that does represent their interests, then it is obvious that they are the future.
The AfD “is not the party whose leader is usually received by the prime ministers of European countries. It is time to change this,” Orbán said, emphasising the importance of engaging with political forces that challenge the European mainstream.
The prime minister’s words resemble U.S. billionaire Elon Musk’s endorsement of the AfD, who said that it is the only force that “can save Germany.”
The right-wing party is expected to get about a fifth of the votes at the elections. Its popularity has been continuously rising due to its unwavering hardline stance on immigration, and its denouncement of woke thinking and radical climate policies, as set out by the ruling left-wing government.
Despite its electoral successes in regional elections last year, the mainstream parties are unwilling to cooperate with the AfD, which they brand as “far-right” and “extremist.”
At her joint press conference with Orbán on Wednesday, Weidel rejected the accusation and said that her conservative party has been stigmatised—unfairly designated an extremist organisation by the country’s domestic intelligence agency. She said the authorities’ and the publicly funded media’s attempts to undermine the AfD’s credibility mean there is no equal competition between the political forces.
Weidel said
Germany has become a weak country with a weak leadership with a weak economic policy.
She blamed Angela Merkel, chancellor between 2005 and 2021, for ruining the country, allowing uncontrolled mass migration into Germany—that contributed to a rise in crimes committed by migrants—and pursuing a green ideology which got rid of the country’s reliable energy sources. It was made clear that the AfD can work together with the conservative government of Hungary which “remains a force against illegal migration.”
Viktor Orbán criticised the European Union for imposing last year a lump sum of €200 million and a daily fine of €1 million on Hungary for not allowing illegal migrants to enter the country.
There can be no compromise on migration. Our country must be protected from unauthorized crossings of the country’s borders. It is a crime. We will convict and expel anyone who commits a crime. We will not change this.
He said if Hungary had given into pressure from the Brussels elite to accept migrants, the country would look like Germany today, “which we don’t want.” Orbán pointed to the fact that the AfD had recently supported a motion in the Bundestag—aiming to stop illegal migrants at the border—which Orbán compared to Hungarian regulations, and said was a “rebellion against the Brussels rules.”
Both leaders expressed their dissatisfaction with the current trajectory of the EU, which has taken away national competences from member states and undemocratically pursued policies that go against the will of a majority of European citizens.
Alice Weidel stressed that the Brussels institutions need to be reformed from the inside, their official competencies curbed, and the “bureaucratic, expensive, and corrupt structure demolished.”
Viktor Orbán blamed the European Green Deal for contributing to soaring energy prices and for stifling Europe’s competitiveness compared to other global powers. He called for energy sanctions against Russia to be lifted, forcefully closed energy sources to be reopened, and for the EU to stop discriminating against the use of atomic energy.
The prime minister said the EU has a problem with democracy, because Brussels ignores the will of the citizens. “People reject migration, yet Brussels pushes it. Europeans want peace, but the EU fuels war,” and “wants to win a war against Russia,” he said, warning that if leaders keep ignoring voters, the EU’s future is at risk.
Orbán voiced his hope that the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House will bring about a different mindset in the West—based on Trump opposing migration, wanting to end the war in Ukraine, deploring radical climate policies, respecting Christian values, and advocating free speech.
