Musk-Backed German Far-Right Leader to Attend Trump Inauguration

(Bloomberg) -- The co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany party has accepted an invitation to Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony in Washington on Monday.

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Tino Chrupalla, who heads the anti-immigrant AfD together with Alice Weidel, confirmed his participation Thursday in an emailed statement, saying that Trump’s presidency “will change the world permanently.”

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The AfD is ready to ensure that Germany “is a strong partner on the European continent,” Chrupalla said, adding that it “must maintain good and peaceful relations with all countries.”

The AfD, which is in second place in opinion polls ahead of next month’s snap election, previously aligned itself against the US and with Russia.

More recently, Weidel has courted Trump and his billionaire backer and ally Elon Musk, and last week participated in a chat with Musk on his X platform after he vigorously endorsed the party.

“We have huge hopes with his presidency,” Weidel told Bloomberg TV last month, in a reference to Trump’s return to the White House.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz will not attend Monday’s inauguration. Germany will be represented by its ambassador to the US, Andreas Michaelis, a government spokeswoman said Friday.

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--With assistance from Michael Nienaber.

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