The German far-right is disguising itself as a lamb to win elections. Alternative for Germany (AfD) has changed the recipe with an image of hope to break its electoral ceiling, a turn that has allowed it to win elections in the eastern states of Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in just two weeks. The party has moved from the campaign slogan "Enough" from five years ago to "Everything is possible" and "Everything will be fine" in Saxony-Anhalt, a change in strategy with which the ultra-rightists move from a narrative denouncing the decline – which, in their view, Germany is experiencing – to selling optimism and enthusiasm. Fear and hope are combined in a perfect cocktail to reap electoral profit from the disenchantment that part of the population feels regarding the federal government of the traditional right-wing CDU and the social democrats of the SPD.

The nightmare continues for German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz. If the defeat of his party, the CDU, and the triumph of the far-right in the state of Saxony-Anhalt two weeks ago were a shock, the results in the elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Berlin have confirmed the deep crisis in which the traditional right-wing party finds itself. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, for the first time, it has been left out of a state Parliament and in Berlin Die Linke (The Left) has beaten them.

Still in shock from the far-right victory in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt two weeks ago, Germany is taking the temperature of the ultra-wave this Sunday in the elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and also in Berlin. The far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) is looking to leverage the momentum of the victory in Saxony-Anhalt to try and repeat it in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the second eastern state to head to the polls. And it could succeed, although far from an absolute majority and with few options to govern. Polls give the AfD 37% of the votes, followed very closely by the Social Democrats, currently in government, with 35%.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, supported this Thursday the commitment of the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, to strengthen relations with countries like Canada, which the head of the European executive proposed to be the first associated member of the European Union, a formula that does not yet exist in European treaties. During the presentation of the CIDOB International Yearbook, Albares asserted that "it is not about excluding anyone, but about preserving an international order capable of offering security, stability, and opportunities for everyone".

Democracy is in decline globally and especially in the United States, where Donald Trump's return to the White House has caused an "unprecedented" democratic backsliding. This is indicated by the report from the Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA), which confirms a global deterioration of democracy, with special emphasis on the North American country, where various indicators, such as freedom of the press or judicial independence, have sunk to their lowest levels in 50 years.

The leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have staged a common front in Cardiff, the Welsh capital, to intensify pressure on London for independence. "Westminster's time is running out," says a joint statement signed by the First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, of the Scottish National Party (SNP); the First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth, of Plaid Cymru, and the First Minister of Northern Ireland, Michelle O'Neill, of Sinn Féin.

It is no coincidence that one of the protagonists of the election campaign in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt has been an old acquaintance for the citizens: the old Simson motorcycle, associated with the daily life of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). The motorcycle, painted blue, the color of Alternative for Germany (AfD), is the vehicle with which the leader of the far-right party Ulrich Siegmund has ridden through election events in which, even, members of the AfD have sung the anthem of the GDR.

Investment in the space sector is key to security and independence. With this argument, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, requested this Thursday that the European Union invest "on a large scale" in this sector. In her speech at the International Space Summit being held in Paris, which aims to boost European space autonomy, the head of the European executive warned that space is strategic and that current investments "will determine the competitiveness" of the community bloc in the future. The global space economy is expected to almost triple by 2035, to 1.8 trillion dollars.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has raised his tone against the far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) with accusations of wanting to implement migration policies that amount to "ethnic cleansing" in Germany. Merz addressed the ultra-right party in this way during a debate in the Bundestag, the German parliament, regarding the 2027 budget, three days after the AfD's victory in the Saxony-Anhalt elections. The German chamber thus became the stage for the first clash between Merz and the far-right party leader, Alice Weidel, following the overwhelming triumph of the ultra-right in the small state in the east of the country and the collapse of the CDU, Merz's party.

Without the necessary majority to govern, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is relying on defectors to come to power in Saxony-Anhalt. "I do not close the doors to anyone, I do not believe in sanitary cordons," said the party leader and election winner, Ulrich Siegmund, after an election in which the ultra-rightists came close to an absolute majority. Siegmund has already expressed his desire to forge a stable majority because governing as a minority would mean depending "on the mood of one deputy or another." Even so, he is calling on "individual actors who are willing to jump over their own shadow and who consider that the future of Saxony-Anhalt is more important than their own careers." Mind you, the condition set by the ultra-rightists is that their "basic positions are maintained."

The victory of Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Saxony-Anhalt has shaken Europe, with the far-right having real options to gain power in a state for the first time since the fall of Nazism. The overwhelming ultra victory has arrived in the state of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR), with economic and social indicators below those of West Germany more than 30 years after reunification. Germany is also not going through its best economic moment, with an engine that has lost power and a federal government that is trying to revive it through rearmament. We talk about the causes of the ultra victory with Steven Forti, professor of contemporary history at the UAB and expert in the far-right.