Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Victor Orban hosted and endorsed Germany’s far-right AfD party’s Alice Weidel in Budapest on Wednesday, calling her “the future of Germany.”
The meeting between Orban and Weidel, who is AfD’s candidate for chancellor, comes less than two weeks before elections in Germany are to take place.
Following the meeting with Weidel, Orban posted to social media: “Today I met the future of Germany. It was an honour to welcome you in Budapest, Chairwoman Alice Weidel!”
Orban’s invite to Weidel marks a shift in his politics
Orban invited Weidel to Hungary’s opulent Carmelite Monastery, the seat of the Hungarian prime minister.
Hosting Weidel signals a change in Orban’s policy of keeping the AfD at bay even though their ideologies align on issues like immigration and both believe that the European Union is intrusive in the affairs of its member countries.
The invitation to Weidel was an unusual gesture for a sitting European party leader considering she is a member of a party that most German politicians deem problematic.
At a press conference following their meeting, Orban said that AfD now has enough support in Germany that other parties can see a possibility to cooperate.
Germany’s other parties, however, have said they would not form a government coalition with the AfD.
“It’s completely clear that the AfD is the future,” Orban said, adding that all of the far-right party’s platform, from immigration to the economy, would be “beneficial for Hungary” if it were implemented in Germany.
What did Alice Weidel say?
Alice Weidel hailed Hungary as a model for her party, saying the country was “a symbol for us, for Alternative for Germany, a symbol of reason and a symbol of sovereignty and independence. I would like that for our country too.”
She also praised Hungary as a bulwark against illegal migration and a critic of European climate protection policy.
At a press conference, Weidel promised to “follow the path of Hungary, our great model,” if the AfD enters the German government following the election.
Recent polls have put the AfD in second place with support of about 20%. However, without the support of other parties, there is no realistic way Weidel could enter government.
Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators have taken to the streets of Germany in recent weeks to protest the far-right.
Edited by: Sean M. Sinico
