Description: Germany’s internal intelligence agency, BfV, has paused the classification of the right – wing party Alternative for Germany (AfD) awaiting Cologne’s Court decision on an injunction filed by the party. BfV earlier this week classified the AfD as an extremist entity in its entirety citing concerns over the party’s outlooks on migration, domestic policy issues and other foreign policy matters. Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, AfD’s joint leadership, stated that the pause represented a small victory for the party which would continue to pursue the classification through legal channels. The announcement came as newly appointed Chancellor Friedrich Merz had a scheduled phone call with US President Donald Trump in which they discussed resolutions for the war in Ukraine and the deteriorating US – EU relations.
Impact: AfD’s classification as an extremist entity based on 1,100-page report caused considerable political upheaval in Germany which was followed by the dramatic overturn of events in the Parliamentary voting to appoint Friedrich Merz as the next Chancellor. Despite heavily criticizing Trump’s policies and rebuking the AfD’s position on Germany’s political landscape, Merz has adopted a moderative tone towards both challenges as he stated that AfD’s extremist classification won’t fundamentally change anything and had a cordial phone call with US President Trump. Despite BfV’s classification pause, AfD still represents a dominant factor on Germany’s political scene as evident internal divisions within the ruling coalition have recently come to light. Merz faces significant political pressure domestically as he campaigns for Germany’s reestablishment on the global geopolitical scene while the AfD would most certainly continue to cause considerable disturbance mostly within Germany’s domestic socio – economic issues and challenges.