Scholz chastises Vance and supports Europe’s position against hate speech and the far right

U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s criticism of Europe’s response to hate speech and the extreme right was sharply rebuked by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday, who said that it was wrong for outsiders to dictate to Germany and Europe what they should do.

Vance criticized German mainstream parties’ “firewall” against the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) and criticized European leaders for limiting free expression on Friday, the opening day of the Munich Security Conference.

“That is inappropriate, particularly when friends and allies are involved. Adding that there were “good reasons” not to cooperate with the AfD, Scholz told the conference on Saturday, “We firmly reject that.”

Due to its Nazi heritage, the anti-immigration party, which is now polling at about 20% ahead of Germany’s national election on February 23, is viewed as a pariah among other major German parties in a society where ultranationalist views are taboo.

“Aggressive war, racism, and fascism must never return.” Because of this, the vast majority of people in our nation are against anyone who promotes or defends illegal National Socialism,” Scholz stated, alluding to the philosophy of Adolf Hitler’s Nazi government from 1933 to 1945.

Following his endorsement of the AfD as a political partner, which Berlin rejected as unwanted electoral meddling, Vance met with the party’s head on Friday.

“Today’s democracies in Germany and Europe are founded on the historic awareness and realization that democracies can be destroyed by radical anti-democrats,” Scholz said, referring more generally to Vance’s criticism of Europe’s restrictions on hate speech, which he has compared to censorship.

“And this is why we’ve created institutions that ensure that our democracies can defend themselves against their enemies, and rules that do not restrict or limit our freedom but protect it.”

On Saturday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz scolded U.S. Vice President JD Vance for criticizing Europe’s response to hate speech and the far-right.

Jean-Noel Barrot, the foreign minister of France, joined the chorus of those who support Europe’s position on hate speech.

Barrot stated on X from Munich, “No one can force their model on us, but no one is obliged to adopt ours.” “Freedom of speech is guaranteed in Europe.”

Ukraine

Following a phone conversation between Russian leader Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump this week, the annual Munich conference was supposed to center on the possibility of ending the war between Russia and Ukraine. However, Vance hardly brought up Russia or Ukraine during his speech to the group on Friday.

He claimed that immigration, which he claimed was “out of control” in Europe, and a retreat from basic principles of defending free speech were the threats to Europe that most concerned him, not China or Russia.

In startled silence, a large number of conference attendees watched Vance’s address. When he made his remarks, there wasn’t much cheering.

The audience laughed and applauded when Scholz said, deadpan, “You mean all these very relevant discussions about Ukraine and security in Europe?” in response to the panel moderator’s question about whether he believed there was anything in Vance’s address worth considering.