Le Pen headlines ‘European counter-summit’ in Germany
KOBLENZ, Germany: French presidential hopeful Marine Le Pen will headline a European gathering of eurosceptic and far-right leaders in Germany yesterday as they seek to put on a united front in a year of highstakes elections.
Billed as a ‘counter-summit’, organisers said the parties would use the event in the historic Rhine river city of Koblenz to set out their joint “vision for a Europe of freedom”.
National Front (FN) leader Le Pen will share the stage with Frauke Petry of the antiimmigration Alternative for Germany (AfD), Geert Wilders of the Dutch anti-Islam Freedom Party and Matteo Salvini of Italy’s anti-EU Northern League.
“The aim is to outline the Europe of tomorrow,” said Le Pen, who is tipped to make it into the second round of France’s presidential election in May.
“Each of us is strongly attached to sovereignty and freedom in general. I believe that what also brings us together is a rejection of the European Union’s laissez-faire policies,” she told French radio Classique on Friday.
She added that none of the participants could be described as “extreme right”, a label used “by our adversaries to discredit us”.
Boosted by Britain’s Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s surprise victory, the parties are hoping to shake up the political landscape, riding a wave of anger against incumbent leaders and anxiety over immigration.
The conference comes just a day after the US inauguration of Trump, who rose to power on a populist surge.
Wilders announced the conference on his Twitter feed using the hashtag “We Will Make Our Countries Great Again” -- a play on the maverick billionaire’s slogan “Make America Great Again”.
The charismatic Dutch MP currently tops polls ahead of March parliamentary elections but observers say he is likely to struggle to find the coalition partners needed to govern.
The Koblenz congress is being organised by the European Parliament’s Europe of Nations and Freedom (ENF) grouping, which was set up by Le Pen in 2015 and is now home to 40 MEPs from nine member states.
Political analyst Timo Lochocki of the German Marshall Fund said the gathering was mainly “just good PR” as the parties had little to gain from strengthening ties. — AFP