Overview
- Only Steffen Kotré is now set to travel to Sochi around BRICS-related events after internal pushback, with Rainer Rothfuß staying in Germany.
- The AfD parliamentary group did not authorize a proposed meeting with Dmitri Medvedev, though Die Zeit reports the trip was supported in principle and financed by the faction.
- Party rules for the trip now bar social media posts, photos with Russian officials, and interviews with local broadcasters, according to ARD.
- Opposition lawmakers accuse the AfD of using parliamentary questions to seek sensitive information on arms deliveries, infrastructure, and military sites for Russia’s benefit, claims the party rejects.
- The Bundestag debated the issue on November 5 at the request of the CDU and SPD, with AfD leaders dismissing the accusations as a political maneuver.