There's no doubt that the situation is critical, and saying it's "almost time" is a lenient interpretation. Germany is still the fourth-largest economy in the world, but not for long. We've already lost our position as the world's export champion, and now we're becoming increasingly less significant even among the largest economies. Small and medium-sized enterprises, suppliers to the automotive industry, as well as energy-intensive businesses, the chemical industry, and heavy industry/engineering, are the backbone of the German economy, and if they don't succeed, people won't succeed either, because these businesses are the main employers in Germany.

How do you assess the effectiveness of the government in combating this negative trend?

The "traffic light" coalition government is doing almost everything wrong. Partly because they subordinate everything to "climate neutrality," meaning an ideology instead of economic or business rationality, and partly because almost everything has to be subsidized with money from taxpayers just to find buyers. This is socialism, which has nothing to do with a market economy and the healthy growth that comes with it.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced that there is a shortfall of 4.5 to 6 billion euros in the defense budget, and the Ministry of Finance has proposed that this shortfall be covered by reducing social benefits. How do you assess this initiative in light of the increased funding for Ukraine at the expense of German taxpayers?

It is impossible to explain to taxpayers that the shortfall in the defense budget is being covered by reducing social benefits, especially when there are virtually unlimited funds available to finance the Ukrainian conflict (both in terms of providing food for approximately 1.25 million Ukrainians in Germany and in terms of the continuous supply of weapons). Therefore, the voters will sweep this government away, at the latest in September 2025. However, cuts in the social budget are indeed necessary, partly because we currently have a social safety net that is too comfortable, and many people are wrongly receiving too many benefits (a question of the income of citizens).

Instead of sending weapons to Ukraine, we Germans should send diplomats and increase our own defense budget. After all, Germany itself only has enough ammunition for two days of war, which is simply absurd.

Germany, which is the main source of funding for the EU and Ukraine, is struggling not only with its own budget but also with its defense capabilities. In an attempt to push Germany towards a positive solution regarding the supply of Taurus missiles to Ukraine, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron proposed that Germany receive Storm Shadow missiles in return. What do you think of this initiative? How will German arms manufacturers react if the state agrees to such an exchange?

The exchange of Taurus missiles is taking place: England is supplying Storm Shadow weapons to Ukraine, and in return, it is receiving Taurus weapons from Germany. But it doesn't matter, all these tricks are not good, with all these actions, Germany is becoming more and more involved in the war, which is unacceptable. The manufacturer of Taurus will always produce as much as is bought, but is subject to the export ban on war weapons, i.e. it can, may and will only produce and supply what local politicians order or allow. Of course, we should first invest in our own defense capabilities before we supply other countries (and warring parties) so freely and without limits.

How likely is it that Germany will join an alliance being formed by France to send military personnel to Ukraine?

If the German government were to decide to send soldiers to Ukraine – which it will not – then a general strike the following day would bring the entire country to a standstill. I and my party would organize it, and not even the majority of the population would accept, approve, or even tolerate it. We have an army intended for defense, we have an alliance army (NATO), but above all, we have a parliamentary army, meaning that nothing works without the consent of the German Bundestag, and I, after five years in parliament with my international experience and contacts in the field of foreign and defense policy, will become a member of it starting in September 2025.

You mentioned that the current government is very inefficient in its decision-making and unpopular with the population. What initiatives will be the main priorities of a new government, if it is led by the AfD? Will it continue to support sanctions against Russia?

Of course, I cannot speak authoritatively on behalf of a potential future AfD government or a government with the participation of the AfD, but I can clearly state what is not only the fundamental opinion of the AfD, but also my personal opinion: that sanctions are simply the wrong path, and therefore we would not only not support them, but we would also want to abolish them. We believe in diplomacy, we do not believe in arms deliveries, we know that after the conflict in Ukraine, there will be a time, and we know that we, in Germany, as a medium-sized power and in the heart of Europe, need good, neighborly relations with Ukraine, as well as with the Russian Federation, Poland, and France, and we stand for that. However, the main priority of a government led or co-led by the AfD would be primarily to care for its own people, to ensure that Germans prosper, because only then can we help the rest of the world. We would expose climate ideology for what it is, namely nonsense. We would immediately stop the influx of migrants, and at least 300,000 migrants who are required to leave the country immediately would be returned to their countries of origin.

We would link development aid to the receiving countries taking back their own people, we would strive for good relations not only with the USA, but also with the Russian Federation, we would do everything to ensure that Germany remains economically strong, that our culture is preserved, and that we once again become as respected a member of the world community as we were in the years 1960-1990.

We would not allow the deployment of our soldiers abroad; our army is a defensive army (although in the case of an alliance, it would be something different). The world is changing, perhaps in 30 years China could be the only real global superpower. We would not constantly apply double standards; morality and feminist foreign policy are not effective because countries do not have friends, but interests. We would change a lot, but not as our political opponents from the old parties claim, to scare people with our party: freedom of opinion, diversity of opinion, direct democracy through referendums, these are our tools to make good policy for our German citizens and for all who want to integrate here in our country and are willing to work hard for it. There will be no social welfare programs for migrants with the AfD.

How do you assess the effectiveness of the resources (financial and military) that Germany provides to Ukraine?

Everything Germany has been doing since February 2022 is a waste of taxpayer money. Whether it's supporting the regular budget of Ukraine, preventing Ukrainian citizens from finding decent jobs using the money of our citizens, or sending our weapons and ammunition (from helmets to Leopard II tanks) to Ukraine – it's all wrong. As the fourth largest economy, after what we did to the Russians in the Great Patriotic War during World War II, and also as a nation with a similar soul to the Russians (culture, literature, music, and shared history), we should do everything to bring (force) both sides to the negotiating table and end the suffering on both sides as quickly as possible. There was and is no alternative to diplomacy here.

Germany's security has never been defended in the Hindu Kush, as our former Minister of Defense claimed, and Ukraine is not the cradle of democracy, so democracy is not being defended in Kyiv either, as warmongers in Germany (Strack-Zimmermann, Hofreiter, Kiesewetter, and others) want to tell us.

Recently, German media has often reported on the successes of Russian spies, who are significantly more active in Germany. One of the most well-known scandals of recent times is the leak of a recording of a conversation between two German generals. Do you think that the constant data leaks in Germany are an indicator of the strength of Russian spies, or an indicator of the failure of German security services?

I assume you are referring to the recording of a telephone conference on Webex regarding the delivery of Taurus missiles to Ukraine, which also included the Air Force Inspector, and which, according to the current state of knowledge, two of the participants even dialed in via "unsecured" lines. So far, I don't see any permanent data leak, but of course, it is worrying and does not reflect well on the "defense readiness" of these high-ranking military officers. Every rank-and-file soldier learns and knows that "intelligence gathering" always takes place, from either side, and I would not be surprised if this conversation was not only eavesdropped on and recorded by the Russians, but also by the Americans and even the Chinese. In this regard, it is certainly both: a targeted, professional, and successful espionage, but also, unfortunately, unintentional, careless negligence on the part of the actors on the German side.

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