Germany’s AfD rethinks calls to abandon euro and EU as far-right gains bring prospect of national power closer

Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany is reconsidering its longstanding hostility toward the euro and European Union as electoral gains at home and the growing influence of allied parties across Europe bring the prospect of national power closer.

Founded in 2013 amid anger over euro-zone bailouts, the AfD initially defined itself through opposition to the common currency before immigration became the central force behind its rise.

But after a historic victory in Saxony-Anhalt in September and with the party now leading nationwide opinion polls, an internal debate is intensifying over whether demands to abandon the euro or EU could become an obstacle to power.

“Never since the end of the Second World War have the prospects for reforming the EU in line with our vision been better,” AfD lawmaker Sebastian Muenzenmaier told Reuters.

Rather than dismantling the bloc, a growing faction wants to reshape it from within.

AfD co-leader Alice Weidel last month presented a “New Deal for Europe” with allies in the Europe of Sovereign Nations group at the European Parliament.

The proposal shifts emphasis away from leaving the EU and euro zone and instead calls for renegotiating European treaties to create a looser “Europe of fatherlands.” Member states would be able to opt out of common policies in areas including immigration and defense spending, while tougher budget rules would be imposed.

The proposal leaves open the possibility of Germany retaining the euro. If attempts to reform the EU failed, Germany’s future relationship with the bloc could instead be put to a referendum.

The shift also reflects political calculations at home. Younger AfD figures argue that uncompromising anti-EU positions could complicate what they see as the party’s most realistic path into federal government: eventual cooperation with Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democrats, who currently rule out any alliance with the AfD.

Jean-Pascal Hohm, the 29-year-old leader of the AfD youth organization Generation Deutschland, warned that dismantling the common currency and returning to purely national economic policies would inflict “massive damage” on Germany.

Similar strategic changes have already taken place elsewhere on Europe’s right. France’s National Rally abandoned its campaign to leave the euro, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy moderated its Euroscepticism after entering government, and Austria’s Freedom Party softened many of its anti-EU positions as it moved closer to power.

The debate inside the AfD, however, remains unresolved. A resolution from the party’s youth wing declaring support for the “European idea” was withdrawn at an August congress after failing to attract sufficient backing.

“The euro issue turned out to be more controversial than we had expected,” Hohm said.