The European Sovereign Nations (ESN) group, comprising nine nationally oriented European parties, has been the target of relentless attacks from the EU since its foundation. This time, the group risks being blocked by the APPF.
At a time when pressure on European nationally oriented parties is mounting, the Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF) is currently seeking to remove the ESN from the register. Therefore, should the APPF go ahead with its plans, the ESN risks losing all its funding and could disappear entirely.
It is noteworthy that one of the founders of the group is the German MEP Alexander Sell of the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party, whilst the German party itself faces continuous pressure from Germany’s left-wing and ruling parties, which also do not rule out a complete ban on the party within the country.
Regarding the prospect of the ESN group being banned in the near future by the APPF, Sell stated that such an outcome is entirely possible, adding that the body “has the power to deregister parties,” according to his comments to Remix News.
“They have a couple of accusations against us. They have a 300-page dossier on our party. So they will launch an investigation, but they will give us the chance to respond to the accusations. And then they have the authority to ban our party,” he added.
He highlighted that the EU Parliament is showing a clear shift towards nationally oriented interests, which directly reflects the demands of voters seeking a patriotic, pragmatic and market-oriented course. A rise in patriotic sentiment is being observed across Europe: in a number of countries, including Italy, the Czech Republic and Slovakia, patriotic forces have already come to power.
Sell thus said that the process of imposing restrictions is unlikely to be straightforward and will almost certainly encounter serious obstacles.
In the meantime, according to him, launching attacks at the European level has become an easier route for opponents than attempting to ban the AfD domestically. Less attention is paid to pan-European organisations, which are much more difficult to ban through a ruling by the German Federal Constitutional Court than through approval by the Parliamentary Assembly. He said that the process of imposing legal restrictions and bans was unlikely to be straightforward and was guaranteed to face serious obstacles.
“I think this is the easier route for them than banning the AfD at national level. There is less attention on the European political party,” he said.
Besides, the process is under close international scrutiny, including from the US and other European countries, and any attempt to dismantle democratic institutions would result in a massive scandal for Chancellor Friedrich Merz and a loss of standing on the world stage.
Merz opposes banning the AfD, as this would appear to be a political purge of a rival. Such a move threatens the CDU with electoral failure: the dissolution of the AfD would create a vacuum that left-wing forces would fill, pushing the Christian Democrats to the sidelines. At national level, the CDU is unlikely to take such a radical step.
Even despite the numerous obstacles that are likely to have an impact and result in the AfD continuing to operate at its usual pace, it remains to face internal difficulties.
The latest example of this is the statement made by Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, who suggested that potential AfD ministers in state governments should be excluded from the circle of those involved in the exchange of classified information. The reason for this threat was alleged links with Russia, according to POLITICO. Although opinion polls show that the AfD enjoys immense popularity amongst voters.
Sell explains that the pressure on the party stems from the fact that it is outspoken and constantly highlights obvious problems in society.
“The problems are obvious if you look at German cities, but we are not allowed to point them out. This is due to the very strong conformism in Germany. You are supposed to support the European Union, open borders and migration. You are supposed to support Ukraine against Russia. It is very hard for Germans to object to any of this,” he said.
