German Chancellor Friedrich Merz gets lukewarm support

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz gets lukewarm support

Chancellor Friedrich Merz has promised a policy change. Respondents to the monthly Deutschlandrend survey seem to have a wait-and-see attitude. A majority of them agrees with labeling the AfD as "right-wing extremist."

Germany's new Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Tuesday that banning the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party would not end support for it, adding that it was more important to fight the causes of its popularity.

In the debate on an AfD ban, the new Chancellor Merz has been reluctant.

Germany's Merz says ban on far-right AfD won't solve problem

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's new Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Tuesday that simply banning the far-right Alternative for Germany would not end the groundswell of support for it, noting it was key instead to fight the causes.

Saxony's Interior Minister Armin Schuster is skeptical about a possible ban on the AfD. The Christian Democrat told "Spiegel" that such proceedings would have to prove the party's aggressive and combative orientation. "We must have evidence that the party is actively planning a coup, if necessary with violence. We currently don't see sufficient evidence for this," Schuster said. At the same time, the minister sees little scope for prosecuting Af…

Merz does not rule out an AfD ban – it is the crucial question that will predetermine his chancellorship. Does he recognize it?