Overview
- Jörg Urban, Steffen Kotré and Hans Neuhoff attended a Sochi gathering branded “Brics Europe” despite Alice Weidel’s recent order to avoid meetings, photos and interviews with Russian officials and media.
- The trio posed for a joint social post and gave interviews, with Kotré speaking to Russian outlets while Urban and Neuhoff talked to the far-right magazine Compact.
- Hans Neuhoff said he met Russian MP Leonid Slutsky, and Jörg Urban delivered a speech questioning sanctions on Russia.
- Tino Chrupalla defended the travelers as having properly registered their trips, and MP Stefan Keuter called the visit useful, saying Kotré kept to a pre-agreed self-commitment.
- Members of the AfD’s foreign affairs group criticized the appearances as playing into Russian propaganda and said internal penalties could be discussed, while an AfD spokesperson said the parliamentary group will assess the trips after return and travel reports; no disciplinary action has been announced.