Two public figures with common interests.

For those who may not know about the AfD:

The AfD and China’s Marriage of Convenience -- (May 2024)

Chinese engagement with the AfD dates back at least as far as 2019. Back then, AfD’s lead candidate in the 2024 European elections Maximillian] Krah was once again the politician in the [Chinese Communist Party] CCP’s eyeline. Traveling with his now arrested aide Guo [German citizen Jian Guao was arrested in Germany in April 2024 over alleged espionage for China], Krah was invited on an all-expenses-paid trip to China by Huawei, although Krah disputes that the state-run tech company paid for anything other than a train ticket. This trip came just months after Krah was first elected to the European parliament, raising serious concerns that he had become – or was becoming – a Chinese asset within the EU. Since the trip, Krah has described concerns about Chinese policy in Xinjiang as ‘anti-China propaganda without facts,’ whilst supporting the CCP’s territorial claims to Tibet and Taiwan. In the European parliament, Krah’s voting record would have been looked upon favourably from Beijing, with the MEP shying away from criticism of China and coming to the defense of Huawei.

Krah is not the first AfD politician to have connections with authoritarian regimes, the article says.