The Fort Worth Press - German far right emboldened by Austria

USD -
AED 3.673042
AFN 72.04561
ALL 90.426454
AMD 393.432155
ANG 1.790208
AOA 916.000367
ARS 1081.039361
AUD 1.654807
AWG 1.8
AZN 1.70397
BAM 1.784082
BBD 2.031653
BDT 122.253136
BGN 1.786375
BHD 0.376648
BIF 2990.649943
BMD 1
BND 1.345222
BOB 6.952794
BRL 5.844604
BSD 1.006157
BTN 85.842645
BWP 14.014139
BYN 3.292862
BYR 19600
BZD 2.021163
CAD 1.42275
CDF 2873.000362
CHF 0.861279
CLF 0.0249
CLP 955.539339
CNY 7.28155
CNH 7.295041
COP 4181.710376
CRC 509.007982
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 100.583808
CZK 23.045604
DJF 179.18358
DKK 6.808204
DOP 63.5439
DZD 133.249715
EGP 50.555986
ERN 15
ETB 132.622212
EUR 0.91245
FJD 2.314904
FKP 0.773571
GBP 0.776488
GEL 2.750391
GGP 0.773571
GHS 15.595895
GIP 0.773571
GMD 71.503851
GNF 8707.867731
GTQ 7.765564
GYD 210.508552
HKD 7.77455
HNL 25.744128
HRK 6.871704
HTG 131.657925
HUF 370.410388
IDR 16745
ILS 3.74336
IMP 0.773571
INR 85.53285
IQD 1318.129989
IRR 42100.000352
ISK 132.170386
JEP 0.773571
JMD 158.686431
JOD 0.708904
JPY 146.93504
KES 130.052452
KGS 86.768804
KHR 4028.278221
KMF 450.503794
KPW 900.005694
KRW 1459.510383
KWD 0.30779
KYD 0.838495
KZT 510.166477
LAK 21794.298746
LBP 90155.803877
LKR 298.335234
LRD 201.240593
LSL 19.187412
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 4.866591
MAD 9.582851
MDL 17.779704
MGA 4665.906499
MKD 56.132269
MMK 2099.475321
MNT 3509.614285
MOP 8.055188
MRU 40.127708
MUR 44.670378
MVR 15.403739
MWK 1744.766249
MXN 20.436704
MYR 4.437039
MZN 63.910377
NAD 19.187412
NGN 1532.820377
NIO 37.026226
NOK 10.768404
NPR 137.348233
NZD 1.787151
OMR 0.384721
PAB 1.006249
PEN 3.697332
PGK 4.15325
PHP 57.385038
PKR 282.466317
PLN 3.899545
PYG 8066.59065
QAR 3.667868
RON 4.542038
RSD 106.86431
RUB 84.834664
RWF 1450.034208
SAR 3.752488
SBD 8.316332
SCR 14.340707
SDG 600.503676
SEK 9.992304
SGD 1.345604
SHP 0.785843
SLE 22.750371
SLL 20969.501083
SOS 575.051311
SRD 36.646504
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.804561
SYP 13002.413126
SZL 19.194527
THB 34.412038
TJS 10.95252
TMT 3.5
TND 3.081231
TOP 2.342104
TRY 37.964804
TTD 6.815964
TWD 33.177504
TZS 2691.721779
UAH 41.414641
UGX 3677.993158
UYU 42.563284
UZS 13000.684151
VES 70.161515
VND 25805
VUV 123.08598
WST 2.809233
XAF 598.364424
XAG 0.033794
XAU 0.000329
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.744173
XOF 598.364424
XPF 108.789054
YER 245.650363
ZAR 19.12525
ZMK 9001.203587
ZMW 27.896921
ZWL 321.999592
  • RBGPF

    69.0200

    69.02

    +100%

  • JRI

    -0.8600

    11.96

    -7.19%

  • BCC

    0.8100

    95.44

    +0.85%

  • SCS

    -0.0600

    10.68

    -0.56%

  • NGG

    -3.4600

    65.93

    -5.25%

  • GSK

    -2.4800

    36.53

    -6.79%

  • CMSC

    0.0300

    22.29

    +0.13%

  • RELX

    -3.2800

    48.16

    -6.81%

  • BCE

    0.0500

    22.71

    +0.22%

  • RIO

    -3.7600

    54.67

    -6.88%

  • CMSD

    0.1600

    22.83

    +0.7%

  • AZN

    -5.4600

    68.46

    -7.98%

  • VOD

    -0.8700

    8.5

    -10.24%

  • BTI

    -2.0600

    39.86

    -5.17%

  • RYCEF

    -1.5500

    8.25

    -18.79%

  • BP

    -2.9600

    28.38

    -10.43%

German far right emboldened by Austria
German far right emboldened by Austria / Photo: © AFP

German far right emboldened by Austria

Buoyed by the endorsement of Elon Musk and enjoying new highs in the polls ahead of elections in February, Germany's far-right AfD is hoping for a further boost from the success of the far right in neighbouring Austria.

Text size:

Long shunned by the political establishment, Austria's Freedom Party (FPOe) is currently on the brink of power after being invited to try to form a government with the conservative People's Party (OeVP).

"We saw what was suddenly possible in Austria and let's see what happens here," AfD deputy parliamentary group leader Beatrix von Storch said on the sidelines of a party conference in the eastern town of Riesa on Sunday.

Herbert Kickl's FPOe had emerged as the largest party at elections in September with around 29 percent of the vote, while the AfD is trailing in second place in Germany behind the conservatives.

But the AfD, which this weekend officially named 45-year-old Alice Weidel as its candidate to be the German chancellor, is catching up -- with one recent survey showing it on 22 percent, just eight points behind the conservatives.

The anti-immigration AfD has little chance of being part of Germany's next government since other parties have committed to maintaining a so-called "firewall" to keep the far right out of government.

But the party founded in 2013, which initially sought to attract voters by positioning itself as anti-establishment, has started to turn its eyes towards power and is calling for the firewall to be dismantled.

- 'Will of the voters' -

The AfD has looked on with interest not only at the FPOe in Austria, but also at the return of Donald Trump -- whose policies are similar to those of the AfD in many areas.

"You've seen what happened in Austria. We'll have to wait and see how the negotiations turn out... But I do see it as positive that in the long term they can't ignore the will of the voters," said Giesela Elliott, a delegate at the conference in Riesa from the western town of Dueren.

"If you want to understand the AfD, you have to look to Vienna," the daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung wrote this week.

"That's just what Alice Weidel is doing. The German far right is watching with interest as Herbert Kickl's FPOe climbs over the firewalls," it said.

The similarities between the FPOe and the AfD are many, from their tough stance on migration to sympathy with Russia and hostility towards the European Union.

During its congress this weekend, the AfD clearly called for the "withdrawal of Germany from the European Union" as well as a new national currency for Germany as an alternative to the euro -- a sharpening of its previous position on the EU.

Weidel also explicitly called for the "remigration" of foreigners.

- 'People's chancellor' -

In Austria, Kickl may have a mandate from the electorate but large parts of the political establishment remain alarmed by his divisive rhetoric.

Kickl frequently employs terms reminiscent of the troubled past of the FPOe -- founded by former Nazis -- even though he denies using Nazi references.

This includes calling himself the future "Volkskanzler" -- the people's chancellor -- as Adolf Hitler was called.

In Germany, the AfD has a powerful radical wing led by firebrand Bjoern Hoecke, who is regularly accused of historical revisionism and has been convicted of using a Nazi slogan at election rallies.

"The negotiations between the FPOe and OeVP are being followed closely by German politicians" with Weidel in particular "inspired by the success of her Austrian sister party", wrote the Austrian daily Der Standard on Sunday.

"The fact that Herbert Kickl is now negotiating with the OeVP and the chancellorship has moved a great deal closer for him gives Weidel hope," Der Standard wrote.

"In Germany, too, she says, the firewall against the AfD will soon fall."

A.Williams--TFWP

Advertisement Image