German Chancellor Scholz warns next European Commission president against courting far-right support

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz waded into the European election campaign on Friday by warning that the next president of the European Commission should not seek support from far-right parties hoping to make big gains in next month’s vote.

Left-leaning parties across Europe have been heaping pressure on their mainstream conservative and liberal counterparts to rule out cooperation with far-right parties after the June 6-9 elections to the European Parliament.

But a big swing to the right could make it hard for the next president of the commission — who will need approval from a majority in the new pan-European parliament — to lead the 27-bloc effectively with only the support of its more traditional political groupings.

“When the next European Commission is formed, it must not rest on the support of a parliamentary majority that also needs the support of right-wing extremists,” Scholz said after talks with his Portuguese counterpart Luis Montenegro in Berlin.

“I am very saddened by the ambiguity of some of the political statements that we have heard recently. But I am clear about this, and it will only be possible to establish a presidency of the European Commission that rests on the support of the traditional parties,” Scholz said.

“Anything else would be a mistake for the future of Europe,” he added.

Scholz, a Social Democrat who heads an unpopular progressive coalition in Germany, did not specify which statements he was referring to.

However, his words are likely to be seen as a warning to the current Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen.

Von der Leyen is a member of Germany’s main opposition Christian Democrats and is expected to seek a second term. She has refused to rule out working with some members of far-right parties.