The FPÖ, a party with deep nationalist roots, is leading negotiations to form a coalition with the conservative Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) after centrist forces failed to form a government. For Habeck, the parallels to Germany are clear: In both countries, far-right parties have surged in popularity amid migration debates and public safety concerns.
The warning comes as Germany grapples with the fallout from a recent knife attack by an Afghan refugee, which left two people dead, including a two-year-old child. The incident has intensified calls for stricter migration controls, a policy platform being championed by Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Friedrich Merz, who is leading the polls at around 30 percent.
In response to the tragedy, Merz proposed closing Germany’s borders to all illegal entries, including asylum seekers — a position that could draw support from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). Merz’s remarks, which included a call to act “regardless of who agrees with our proposals,” have fueled speculation that the CDU is willing to risk breaking the taboo of working with the AfD in the pursuit of tougher migration laws.
The AfD, polling at around 20 percent and holding its own conference in the eastern city of Halle over the weekend, celebrated the potential collapse of Germany’s political firewall, the so-called Brandmauer, that mainstream parties have upheld for years to isolate the far right.
Habeck directly criticized Merz for considering the AfD’s backing to pass migration laws in the Bundestag. “Nothing about this is harmless,” Habeck warned. “It should not be dismissed as a strategic mistake.” He urged Merz to reconsider, warning that such moves erode democratic norms: “Forgetting history leads to completely, completely wrong results in Europe.”
For Habeck, the situation in Austria as well as developments in Germany highlight what can happen when mainstream parties fail to stand together against nationalist forces.
“Austria is very close to us in culture and political tradition,” Habeck said. “In Austria, it has not been possible for a coalition of conservative Social Democrats and a progressive, liberal party to form a government, although they knew that a right-wing extremist party could then take over the government.”
Framing the upcoming Feb. 23 federal election as a referendum on Germany’s political future, Habeck warned that the stakes go beyond migration policy. “This federal election has suddenly turned into a true election of alternatives,” he said. “It asks the fundamental questions: Will Germany, will Europe, rise to the challenges we face, and how?”
Habeck tied the fight against far-right populism to broader struggles for democracy and climate action, calling on voters to reject what he described as a dangerous slide toward authoritarianism.