German far-right lawmaker calls for US-German nationalist alliance at MAGA gala
By Hussein Waaile and Sarah Marsh
NEW YORK/BERLIN, Dec 14 (Reuters) – A senior German far-right lawmaker called for an alliance between the United States and German nationalist parties at a MAGA gala on Saturday, where he was encouraged by a new U.S. security strategy praising Europe’s patriotic parties.
Markus Frohnmaier was among about 20 state, federal and EU lawmakers from the Alternative for Germany who attended the annual black tie gala hosted by the Young Republican Club of New York.
The glitzy gala has become a gathering spot for pro-MAGA Republicans and international far-right figures in recent years; Two years ago, US President Donald Trump himself led this gala.
Many European leaders fear that the Trump administration’s growing support for the continent’s far-right parties will give them greater legitimacy and propel them to power. The anti-immigrant AfD is leading nationwide polls in Germany ahead of five state elections in 2026.
The US strategy document published last week frames Europe as stifling free speech and political dissent and says Washington should focus on “developing resistance to Europe’s current course.”
In his speech at the gala, Frohnmaier said, “The alliance between American and German patriots is the nightmare of the liberal elites and the hope of the free world.”
“Let’s protect our culture, let’s protect our nations, and let’s reintegrate the West.”
Speaking earlier on Saturday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz acknowledged that Europe must be ready for a fundamental change in its relations with the United States, adding that the era of “Pax Americana” was largely over.
Frohnmaier, the foreign policy spokesman of the AfD’s federal parliamentary group, met with US Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah Rogers before the gala.
Rogers released a video last week criticizing alleged censorship across Europe.
Politicians from mainstream German parties accused the AfD of “anti-German diplomacy” and what they called railing against political repression.
The AfD was classified as a far-right organization by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency earlier this year.
Germany’s other parties are refusing to work with MPs – a deal the AfD says is undemocratic.
Ties between the Young Republican Club of New York and the AfD date back several years but have deepened and attracted increased attention in recent months.
The tenor, who sang the US national anthem at the gala, sang the taboo first verse of the German national anthem, which the Nazis used to defend Germany’s superiority, at the club’s reception for two AfD MPs in October.
Frohnmaier said he invited US State Department officials and lawmakers to a congress to be held in Germany in February, the month when leaders usually flock to the country for the Munich Security Conference.
The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Hussein Waaile in New York and Sarah Marsh in Berlin; Additional Reporting by Friederike Heine; Editing by Christina Fincher)
