Berlin Warns of 60,000 Right-Wing Extremists in Disputed Data
Germany's domestic intelligence service has declared right-wing extremism the greatest threat to democracy, a conclusion critics view as politically motivated given its focus on the popular AfD party.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt and Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) president Sinan Selen presented the agency’s 2025 annual report on Tuesday, June 30th, according to The European Conservative. The officials announced that the number of individuals classified as belonging to Germany’s right-wing extremist milieu has increased.
The assessment comes from an intelligence office that observers note has become increasingly politicized in recent years, with critics arguing the BfV has systematically worked to associate extremism with the AfD despite the party’s significant electoral support across Germany.
The AfD has emerged as Germany’s most popular political party in numerous polls, yet continues to face surveillance and classification efforts by the domestic intelligence apparatus. The party has consistently rejected allegations of extremism, maintaining that its positions reflect legitimate conservative and sovereigntist political views.
The BfV’s latest report underscores the ongoing tension between Germany’s established political and security institutions and rising populist movements that challenge the country’s post-war political consensus. The designation of right-wing extremism as the primary threat occurs as Germany grapples with questions of immigration policy, national sovereignty, and the role of traditional conservative values in public life.
With information from The European Conservative
