Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent a letter to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, “requesting a pause on all intelligence sharing with Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, the BvF [sic], that could be used to target political opponents,” Cotton’s website and X account report, referring to the German domestic intelligence, Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (BfV). The statement explains that the letter “comes after the BvF’s recent classification of German opposition party Alternative for Germany (AfD) as a ‘proven right-wing extremist organization.'
Senator Cotton’s further wrote:
“I understand that liberal elites on both sides of the Atlantic loathe the AfD, but AfD’s platform has resonated with many Germans. Unsurprisingly so, since an agenda of strong borders, energy independence, and economic growth has appealed to our own electorate and may other Western democracies. Rather than trying to undermine the AfD using the tools of authoritarian states, Germany’s incoming government might be better advised to consider why the AfD continues to gain electoral ground and how German’s government can address the reasonable concerns of its citizens.”
