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Germany’s new chancellor Friedrich Merz has warned the US to “stay out” of his country’s politics after the far-right AfD received strong backing from allies of the US president, Donald Trump.
Merz, 69, a conservative who was elected as chancellor of Europe’s biggest economy earlier in the day, also said he planned to speak by phone with Trump on Thursday.
His CDU/CSU alliance won February’s elections ahead of the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which came second with more than 20% , a record for the group.
During the campaign, the AfD won strong backing from Trump ally Elon Musk, the technology billionaire, and the vice president, JD Vance.
Merz condemned recent “absurd observations” from the US, without specifying particular statements, and said he “would like to encourage the American government … to largely stay out of” German domestic politics.
A politician with longstanding US ties, Merz said he had always felt “from America that they can clearly distinguish between extremist parties and parties of the political centre”.
Merz, speaking with public broadcaster ZDF on Tuesday, noted that “I did not interfere in the American election campaign” that elected Trump.
Last week, after Germany’s domestic intelligence agency designated the AfD a “right-wing extremist” party, US secretary of state Marco Rubio called the move “tyranny in disguise” and said “Germany should reverse course”.
At the time, the German foreign ministry pushed back, saying: “This is democracy. This decision is the result of a thorough and independent investigation to protect our constitution and the rule of law. It is independent courts that will have the final say. We have learnt from our history that rightwing extremism needs to be stopped.”
Vance wrote on X that “the west tore down the Berlin Wall together. And it has been rebuilt – not by the Soviets or the Russians, but by the German establishment”.
Musk participated virtually at a January rally for the AfD, telling the crowd that “you really are the best hope” for Germany.
