- The shape of the European right is currently largely determined by two women: Marine Le Pen and Giorgia Meloni
- The Alternative for Germany party has been expelled from Le Pen’s political faction, which does not please the far right in Europe. Meloni, in turn, strongly criticizes Italy’s immigration policy
- For now, both parties say they are not against Europe, but rather that they want a slightly different Europe. With such a narrative, the field opens up for those who would openly oppose Europe – comments Dr. Bartlomiej Nowak
- Hungarian László Toroczkai, leader of the nationalist HVIM party, openly calls for the creation of a new far-right faction in Europe, convincing, among others, politicians from the Polish Federation
- Some confederates criticize the AfD, but no one talks about possible alliances in Europe
- You can find more such articles on the Onet homepage
Marine Le Pen is sending a clear signal to Giorgia Meloni: it is time to join forces in the European Parliament.
Such an alliance would not completely change the balance of power in Europe yet, but it could shake the current status quo of the Christian Social Democratic Liberal Party in parliament.
An alliance between two women. The battle for second place
Both women lead major right-wing factions. Le Pen is the face of Identity and Democracy (ID), which includes, among others, the French National Rally, the Italian Northern League, or the Dutch Freedom Party.
Until recently, the AfD was also present there, but the statements of its politicians that “not all SS members were criminals” were not enough. In addition, the AfD must face serious accusations that its top politicians received money from Russian services in exchange for public statements against Ukraine.
The AfD has been expelled from the identity party, which does not please the far right in Europe. But more on that in a moment.
Meloni is the most important politician in the second right-wing faction – the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), which includes, among others, the Latvian National Union, the Spanish VOX, or the Polish Law and Justice.
— If Le Pen and Meloni join, their parties will still seek second place in the European Parliament, not win, notes Dr. Bartlomiege Nowak, an expert at the institution. Kazimierz Pulaski, researcher at the Vistula Academy of Finance and Business, is a member of the Europe Direct team, a team of experts at the European Commission.
A merger of these factions seems unlikely. Le Pen and Meloni personally do not like each other. He adds that though Melonie has recently changed her tone to a more friendly one.
Right-wing rhetoric is changing the European Parliament
The expert has no doubt that during the coming period in the European Parliament, the Christian Democrats, Socialists and Liberals will continue to have a majority. However, he believes that the growing importance of right-wing forces and right-wing discourse in Europe will have a tangible impact on politics and the work of European institutions. Five years ago, Ursula von der Leyen was appointed President of the European Commission, but she received only nine votes more than required. He voted for, among others: PiS. It is now believed that he may face serious problems regarding the nomination.
– That’s why von der Leyen has recently made very open moves towards right-wing groups. He gets along great with Melonie. Right-wing rhetoric will influence European policy in areas such as the Green Deal, immigration issues, international trade, and EU enlargement and reforms. What’s more, the CHP is also moving more and more to the right, for example, speaking out about reviewing the Green Deal – Dr. Nowak mentions.
But the European right faces a problem. As in Poland, this environment is deeply divided, and the closer the right wing gets to the political mainstream, the more voices from the center grow about “betrayal of ideals.” There are far-right forces in Europe that do not like Le Pen’s throwing of the AfD or Meloni’s immigration policy.
The extreme right accuses us of treason and wants “something new”
Meloni has already become mainstream in European politics in many areas. Le Pen withdrew her announcement about leaving the eurozone. For now, both parties say they are not against Europe, but rather that they want a slightly different Europe. With such a narrative, the field opens up for those who would openly oppose Europe – comments Onet’s interlocutor.
Hungarian Laszlo Toroczkai, leader of the nationalist HVIM party, has publicly criticized Europe’s “mainstream” right-wing parties, criticizing their decision to expel the AfD.
In his opinion, both factions are not fighting the immigration problem adequately. Unfazed by the accusations against AfD politicians, Toroczkai calls for the creation of a new faction in Europe, convincing, among others, politicians from the Polish Union.
Dr. Nowak does not really believe in the political success of such a movement.
The AfD has very serious scandals when it comes to accusations of taking money from Russia. Overall, there are no strong pro-Russian trends in any of the countries, except perhaps Viktor Orbán in Hungary. Even in Slovakia, support for Robert Fico does not directly concern Russia, but rather relates to its position on the war. The pro-Russian argument is generally unpopular across Europe. And if someone takes money from the Russians, he may only face serious problems. The second thing, friendly slogans about the SS, do not have any support in Europe today – comments Dr. Nowak.
The Polish Union in the European Puzzle
– The Fidesz group led by Viktor Orbán is a free voter in the European Parliament. He adds that this raises great controversy, as part of the right, for example in the Czech Republic and Romania, does not want to be in the same group with a group that simply favors Russia.
In the Union, he spoke warmly of the AfD (even before the above-mentioned scandals), among others: Grzegorz Braun, stressing that anti-globalization views are the glue here. Today Brown didn’t pick up the phone from us. It is not known whether he changed his mind about German politicians.
Other CFD politicians are clearly distancing themselves from the AfD. What the leader of the Alternative for Germany party said, that not everyone who wore an SS uniform was a criminal, means that this party will lose a lot. These words were said at the end of the campaign. This party has insulted itself, let’s be honest. They have gone too far in their story. We will see what the consequences will be after June 9 and how many representatives of the AfD will enter the European Parliament – comments Ewa Zajkowska-Hernik, spokeswoman for the Union and politician running for a term in the European Parliament, in an interview with Onet .
I wonder where there is a place for confederation on the European stage? Whether in a bloc of large right-wing parties or in a new structure, as mentioned among others, Toroczkai mentioned above? – We will certainly cooperate with everyone who will protect the interests of their countries and stop extremely harmful ideas for the European Union. I do not want to prejudge the matter today, because the election campaign is dynamic, and the final appearance of the new European Parliament may be very different. It will be interesting to see how voters in Italy, Spain and France will hold these right-wing groups, which have become more or less mainstream and acted under EU diktats, to account, Zajkowska-Hernik answers.
– Many voters in Italy may be disappointed with the policy of Giorgia Meloni, who built her campaign on an anti-immigrant message, but turned out to have followed a very ineffective policy of protecting the Italian borders against the uncontrolled flow of migrants, as he put it. Add.
I also asked one of the union’s leaders, Christophe Boussac, for comment. We have not and are not holding any talks about joining any European alliance. Bosak replied: “We are awaiting the results of the European Parliament elections.”
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