German Chancellor: “We are the firewall”... Bae Su-jin declared in response to far-right AfD advance

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Lee Ji-heon = German Chancellor Friedrich Merz reaffirmed the will of the ruling Christian Democratic Party (CDU) to act as a 'firewall' to prevent the anti-immigrant, pro-Russian far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party from gaining power.

In an interview published by the British daily Financial Times (FT) on the 15th (local time), Chancellor Friedrich Merz, leader of the CDU, said, "If there is such a thing as a firewall, we are the firewall. We guarantee that we will not cooperate with this party."

Prime Minister Merz said, “They want to leave the European Union (EU), leave the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and give up support for Ukraine,” adding, “They have absolutely nothing in common (with us).”

Regarding the possibility of his voluntary resignation, he said bluntly, "That will not happen," and dismissed calls for his resignation raised from inside and outside the party.

Prime Minister Merz emphasized, “The key question is whether this government can achieve fundamental reform of the social security system,” adding, “I am determined to achieve it.”

Chancellor Merz's remarks came as the far-right AfD is advancing and threatening mainstream parties, including the CDU.

Germany's mainstream political parties have established the so-called firewall principle of not cooperating with the AfD, but some local councils say that this firewall has collapsed.

In fact, the AfD candidate recently won the chairmanship in the German state legislature of Saxony-Anhalt, and the decisive factor was the fact that there were four defection votes from the party that set up the firewall. Progressives, such as the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which is in a coalition with the CDU, suspect that some lawmakers from the moderately conservative CDU voted for the AfD candidate.

The FT reported that while AfD's strong progress continues in local elections, its national approval rating is approaching 30%.

Prime Minister Merz said, "I am not sure" whether the AfD's approval rating has reached its limit, suggesting that support may continue to expand.

Meanwhile, with elections scheduled within this year or next year in France, Spain, and Italy, there is a possibility that the political landscape of EU member states will fundamentally change as far-right or hard-line conservative parties advance.

In France, Marine Le Pen, a member of the far-right National Coalition (RN), is leading the approval ratings ahead of next year's presidential election.

With early general elections scheduled for next month in Spain, there is speculation that the conservative People's Party (PP) and the far-right Vox Party may succeed in forming a coalition government.

In Italy, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has already been credited with increasing trust in Europe's right-wing governments, and has set a record for the longest reign in history.