BERLIN (Reuters) – One of the leaders of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) will attend the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump on January 20, just a month before Germany’s federal elections, the party announced on Thursday.
The call to Tino Chrupalli came after Trump ally Elon Musk endorsed the AfD and a debate with co-host Alice Weidel on social media platform X raised concerns about the US billionaire’s ambition to influence European politics.
Most polls put the anti-immigration AfD in second place behind the conservatives ahead of the Feb. 23 election in Europe’s biggest economy. However, the main parties have vowed not to cooperate with the party, which is under surveillance by security services on suspicion of being right-wing.
“Attending the inauguration of President Donald Trump demonstrates once again that we are pursuing interest-driven politics,” Chrupalla said in a statement.
“As an alternative, we are ready to be a strong partner on the European continent. Germany must maintain good and peaceful relations with all countries,” he added.
Trump broke with precedent and invited several foreign leaders to the ceremony. Historically, they have not attended inaugurations due to security concerns and have sent diplomats in their stead.
However, the German government will be represented at the inauguration by its ambassador to the United States.
