Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is distancing itself from Donald Trump due to the Iran war, which is highly unpopular in Germany and threatens to undermine the economic recovery prospects of Europe's largest economy.

Last week, the party instructed lawmakers connected to the President's "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) movement to reduce their visits to the United States. "Even before the war started, this connection was not the best option," a senior party figure stated. "The AfD wants to make contact more targeted and will no longer send large delegations."

Although the AfD had actively courted the MAGA movement and other Trump allies, the party's co-leaders, Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, swiftly condemned the US decision to bomb Iran last month. Weidel, seen as the more pro-American voice within the party leadership, accused Washington of acting without a plan and denounced the conflict as "a disaster."

According to Jacob Ross, a researcher at the Berlin-based German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), the AfD's stance "has begun to shift" since earlier this year when Trump threatened to take over Greenland. "The intervention in Iran, and the potential recession it could bring to Europe, is a turning point," Ross said. "Voices within the AfD that have long viewed the US as a poor ally have regained the upper hand."

Many members of the AfD, which polls neck-and-neck with Chancellor Friedrich Merz's CDU, had previously cheered for Trump's re-election. A delegation of party officials traveled to Washington for his inauguration last year. In response, the MAGA movement offered unprecedented support to the AfD ahead of the February 2025 German federal election, with prominent figures like Elon Musk and Vice President JD Vance publicly endorsing the party.

In the months following the election, where the AfD finished second with a record 21% of the vote, the party continued to cultivate relationships with Trump administration officials and the broader MAGA movement.

This sudden change in attitude comes as the AfD prepares for key regional elections in two eastern German states, where anti-American sentiment remains widespread. The party is striving to secure first place for the first time historically in the September votes in Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

"What I hear from the vast majority of voters—of course there are exceptions—is that they do not like this war," said AfD lawmaker Christina Baum, who represents Saxony-Anhalt. "Initially, they viewed President Trump very positively. He made very positive promises, saying he wouldn't start any more wars."

However, she noted that voters are now anxious about soaring energy prices as Germany shows signs of recovery after years of stagnation. They also fear Berlin could be dragged into the conflict. "President Trump has already called for the EU to get involved. That is what people are afraid of."

Last weekend, Chrupalla gave a speech in his home state of Saxony in eastern Germany, calling for the withdrawal of approximately 38,000 US troops stationed on German soil. Manes Weisskircher, a political scientist at Dresden University of Technology, suggested that while troop withdrawal is a long-standing party policy, the timing of his remarks was "particularly justified" given the Iran conflict and the "overwhelming skepticism of war among Germans."

An ARD-DeutschlandTrend poll in early March showed that 58% of Germans considered the US-Israeli attacks on Iran unjustified.

The AfD's shift in position is not without opposition. Lawmaker Maximilian Krah described the German-American alliance as "the foundation and framework of our security architecture." He wrote on X this week: "A break with Trump would damage the AfD in every conceivable way. This must not be allowed to happen."

Others, like the party's foreign policy spokesman, Markus Frohnmaier, are attempting to find a middle ground. As a key figure in building ties with the MAGA movement, Frohnmaier praised the US strikes on Iran as a "precise surgical operation with clear objectives," while also calling for de-escalation.

Last week, Frohnmaier hosted an event at the Bundestag featuring Stefano Forte, President of the New York Young Republican Club. AfD lawmakers frequently applauded and cheered at mentions of Trump.

Thuringia lawmaker Stefan Müller said that people in the AfD have "two hearts in their chest." "On one hand, we know that Donald Trump pursues political approaches on many issues that align with ours, and he acts as a protective force against attacks on the AfD as an opposition party. We are deeply grateful for that." "On the other hand, he has adopted a highly aggressive geostrategic course in foreign policy, which does not align with our convictions."