New headache for Merz & panic for Zelensky as pro-Russia AfD confirms German contact with Putin?

Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party signalled plans to restore cooperation with Russia after securing a historic election victory in Saxony-Anhalt, bringing the question of Berlin’s future ties with Moscow back into focus. AfD lawmaker Matthias Moosdorf said a new state government would seek to resume engagement with Russia, with science, culture and other areas open to state-level contacts among the possible priorities. Speaking to Russian media, Moosdorf said concrete steps towards renewed cooperation could be taken in 2027, according to the Russian outlet Sputnik. The AfD finished first in the state election with 43.8 per cent of the vote, winning 39 of the 83 seats in the state parliament, three short of an outright majority. The result has raised questions over whether the party’s growing influence in eastern Germany could complicate Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s approach to Moscow.