Hungarian PM Orban hosts German far-right AfD leader

BUDAPEST

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Wednesday hosted one of the leaders of Germany's main far-right party, two weeks before Germans head to the polls.

Emboldened by his "dear friend," U.S. President Donald Trump's return to power, Hungary's nationalist leader has vowed to "occupy Brussels" by bringing together far-right parties in the European Parliament.

On Wednesday, he held talks in Budapest with Alice Weidel, one of the co-leaders of Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and its top election candidate in the upcoming polls.

It marked the first time that Orban, who has regularly received far-right party leaders over the years, welcomed a politician from AfD to Budapest.

AfD has been rising in popularity in Germany, and last month, Friedrich Merz, the leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), broke a German political taboo of not cooperating with the far right when he sought parliamentary support from AfD.

The talks between Orban and Weidel mainly focused on the "European migration crisis," according to the Hungarian government.

Both politicians are known for their hardline anti-immigration stance.

The meeting comes in the final stretch of campaigning for the German elections on Feb. 23.

AfD is polling in second place, averaging close to 21 percent, behind the CDU/CSU, which leads with around 29-30 percent.

Last year, Orban helped launch the Patriots for Europe group, which became the European Parliament's third-largest party, realigning the continent's far-right forces.