Munich security conference: Trump’s Vice meets Weidel – no appointment with Scholz

After his sharp criticism of the European allies at the Munich Security Conference, US Vice President JD Vance met with AfD boss Alice Weidel. According to AfD, the 30-minute conversation took place in the Munich hotel of the deputy of US President Donald Trump away from the conference location. Weidel and the AfD had been excluded by the conference line as in the past two years – including because their party is classified by the protection of the constitution as partly right -wing extremists.

A spokesman Weidel described the discussion atmosphere as very relaxed and friendly. In terms of content, it was about the war in Ukraine and also about the “brand wall” to exclude coalitions with the AfD, which Vance had spoken to in his speech.

A Vance spokesman also confirmed the meeting. The Vice President met with leading politicians from all major German parties, it said. In the morning, Vance also met Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens), Union Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz (CDU) and Chancellor Head Wolfgang Schmidt (SPD). Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit justified this with the fact that the two had not found a suitable appointment.

Heusgen: AfD does not match the conference motto

More than 50 heads of state and government as well as over 150 ministers take part in the Munich security conference. It is considered the world’s most important expert meeting on security policy. Conference director Christoph Heusgen had again not invited AfD and BSW and also explained the exclusion in early February in an interview by the German Press Agency by the fact that both parties did not correspond to the basic principle “Peace Through Dialogue, Peace by dialogue” of the conference.

Members of both parties left the Bundestag when the Ukrainian President Wolodymyr Selenskyj spoke there. “This is the opposite of dialogue and I don’t want to experience the like at the conference,” he said. Heusgen also justified the exclusion of the AfD with the classification as partly secured right -wing extremist.

Vance: “There is no place for fire walls”

Vance had sharply criticized this in his speech on Friday. “There is no place for fire walls,” he said, accusing European allies to endanger democracy. “Democracy is based on the sacred principle that the voice of the people counts.” Either you keep this principle upright or not.

Vance quoted Pope John Paul II, who in his opinion was one of the most extraordinary advocates of democracy, with the words: “We should not be afraid of our citizens, even if they express views that do not match their leadership.”

Pistorius: “This is not acceptable”

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius rejected the attacks in his subsequent speech with clear words. “If I have understood it correctly, he compares conditions in parts of Europe with those in authoritarian regimens,” said the SPD politician. “This is not acceptable and that is not the Europe and not the democracy in which I live and that I am currently making election campaign.”

Every opinion has a voice in this democracy. “In part, in some cases it enables extremist parties like the AfD to make election campaign as normal. Just like any other party. That is democracy,” said Pistorius.

Vance meets Europeans with a counter attack

The defense minister was sitting in the audience when Vance was talking. It was actually expected that he would respond to the urgent security issues – from the efforts of peace in Ukraine to the load division in defense spending. However, he practically saved the security policy and instead devoted himself to democracy.

He met Europeans with a memorable counter attack. The new US government of President Donald Trump meets massive reservations about its handling of the rule of law and democracy among most governments in the EU. After his election defeat in 2020, the billionaire had not recognized the outcome of the election and stare at his supporters to an attack on the parliament to tip the election result. It is also Trump who is now testing the limits of the constitutional system at a dizzying pace and extent during his second term.

“In Washington there is a new sheriff in the city”

Vance tried to turn the tables in his Munich speech. He accused European allies of pursuing opinions as disinformation. It is certainly important to set up defense ability, he said. But he was not primarily concerned about external actors. “Because of the danger from the inside, I am concerned that Europe could withdraw from some of the basic values, of values ​​that are shared with the USA,” he said.

Vance sees immigration as the most pressing problem for Europe and the United States. He referred to the alleged attack in Munich, where the day before an Afghan had driven in a group of demonstrators by car. “How often do we have to suffer these horrific setbacks before we change our course?” The Trump system praised Vance with the sentence: “In Washington there is a new sheriff in the city.”

Steinmeier criticizes the US government with “other world view”

Shortly before the appearance of the US Vice President, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had sharply criticized the US government. “The new American administration has a different worldview than we do. One that does not consider for established rules, grown partnership and trust,” he said in his opening speech. It will therefore be the central task of the coming years to receive the idea of ​​an international community, he warned.

The term “fire wall” stands for the exclusion of coalitions with the AfD. Since the Union in the Bundestag brought a paper on migration policy with the support of the AfD by the Bundestag, it has been discussing whether this fire wall is shaking.

Vance had expressed his criticism of the exclusion of the AfD in Germany shortly before his speech in an interview on the “Wall Street Journal”. The US medium had cited him with the words that he would urge German politicians to work with all parties, including the AfD.