"Allegations of espionage against the Alternative for Germany (AfD) have been raised by the interior minister of the state of Thuringia. In an interview with Handelsblatt, Social Democrat (SPD) Georg Maier expressed concern that the AfD is abusing its parliamentary powers to gather information about Germany's transport infrastructure, water supply, digital infrastructure and energy supply. "With its requests, one gets the impression that the AfD is working through a list of tasks assigned by the Kremlin," Maier told the newspaper this week."
"In Germany, Kleine Anfragen (literally "small inquiries") are an official parliamentary instrument to help parties obtain information from both federal and state governments that is not publicly available. They are primarily used by opposition parties that do not have direct access to the ministries and authorities of the government apparatus. The governments must respond to the inquiries in writing. In Thuringia, the state and parliamentary group leader of the AfD is Bjorn Hocke, who is classified as a confirmed right-wing extremist by the security authorities."
Thuringia's interior minister alleged that the AfD is abusing parliamentary inquiry powers to gather sensitive information on transport, water, digital and energy infrastructure. The Thuringian AfD submitted 47 Kleine Anfragen in the past 12 months with increasing intensity and depth. Inquiries target IT and police equipment, including drone detection and defense, as well as civil protection, health care and Bundeswehr equipment. Kleine Anfragen are an official instrument that requires governments to respond in writing. Bjorn Hocke leads the AfD in Thuringia and is classified as a confirmed right-wing extremist who has praised Vladimir Putin and been convicted for using a banned Nazi-era slogan.
Read at www.dw.com
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