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The success of right-wing nationalist and extreme parties in large countries such as France and Germany affects the composition of the EU Parliament. It breathes life into the matter to try gather forces on the far right edge in the same party group to increase the members’ political influence.
SD’s top candidate in the EU elections, Charlie Weimers, does not believe in the idea.
– There are those who dream of becoming bigger than the political forces that have so far dominated the EU. I don’t see that as possible. The differences in the foreign policy approach are far too profound, he says.
In plain language, it is about on the relationship with Putin and Russia. Parties such as the French National Assembly and the German AFD are failing in their support for Ukraine, according to Weimers. If there is a “supergroup”, he believes it will be without several parties in Eastern Europe and the Nordics, such as SD.
However, cooperating on concrete issues is another matter, regardless of whether it is about parties on the left or right of the political scale.
– It is with a majority that we can push policy through. Whether we do it with three, four or five party groups is of less importance.
In the EU Parliament there is right-wing nationalist parties that today are not part of any group. The largest is the Hungarian government party Fidesz, which has twelve members. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has repeatedly expressed his desire to be part of SD’s party group ECR.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, right, chairs the pan-European party group ECR, which Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, wants to join. Photo: Geert Vanden Wijngaert/AP
At the same time, in addition to taking Hungary in an authoritarian direction, Orbán has blocked aid to Ukraine and continued to cultivate contacts with Putin.
– We would prefer to see Fidesz join somewhere else, comments Charlie Weimers.
Is it an election promise that SD will not sit in the same party group as Fidesz?
– No, I cannot make that promise. The promise I can make is that we will work to ensure that Fidesz’s foreign policy has no influence on our party group’s policy.
He says that the SD is ready to leave the ECR if Fidesz is allowed to become a member. SD may also consider forming a group within ECR. Such a solution is found in the Parliament’s Green Group, which includes Catalan and Galician independence parties.
Facts. Forward for right-wing nationalists in the elections to the EU Parliament
In the European Parliament, national parties cooperate in party groups across national borders. Right-wing nationalist parties are part of ECR, part of ID.
I ECR (European Conservatives and Reformists) include the Sweden Democrats, Polish Law and Justice, True Finns, Italy’s Brothers and Spanish Vox.
In the ID group (Identity and Democracy) includes the French National Assembly, the Italian Lega, the German AFD and the Austrian FPÖ.
Some parties, which are close ideologically, are not part of any party group. Including Hungarian Fidesz.
According to the opinion institute Ipsos’ forecast, ECR will grow from today’s 68 to 76 members and ID from 59 to 81.
A “super group” consisting of the entire ECR and ID would gather 157 members after the election and become the parliament’s second largest party group, after the Christian Democratic EPP.
Source: Ipsos/Euronews
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