December 16, 2025, 08:27December 16, 2025, 08:53
It has now been over two weeks since Alexander Eichwald gave a speech at the founding of the AfD’s new youth organization went viral. The 30-year-old stood out with Hitler-like statements, angular gestures and a rolling R – which caused irritation across the political spectrum.
Alexander Eichwald raised questions with his speech.image: x
Not only political opponents of the AfD, but also the AfD itself were uncomfortable with the speech. Their district association therefore took charge shortly afterwards a party exclusion process against Eichwald. At the youth organization’s event in Giessen, one questioner had already suspected that Eichwald could be an “undercover agent” – an informant infiltrated by the German government.
In the days and weeks that followed, Germany was puzzled: Was Alexander Eichwald really serious about his speech or was it satire? The search for an answer was difficult. So after his speech, Eichwald disappeared from the public again – until Monday, when he told the Austrian standard his silence broke. The question of how serious he actually was about his viral speech at the end of November remained open.
Eichwald explained to the Standard that he had taken various points seriously. For example, he once again emphasized rolling the R so hard because he was Russian-German and that’s how he learned it. At the same time, the Standard writes that Eichwald sometimes pronounced the R differently in the conversation.
Speech by Alexander Eichwald AfD
Video: x
Eichwald’s ideology also remains largely vague in terms of content. In certain passages, Eichwald suggests that he actually follows the AfD line. He says he “slid into the party” through friends and acquaintances. He “saw an opportunity” with this one. He explains something like this:
“I am a migrant myself, it goes without saying for me that you adapt linguistically and culturally when you immigrate.”
According to Eichwald, he also stands behind the statement that German politicians will “never again work for other peoples instead of their own.” And when it comes to migration, he also fundamentally agrees with the AfD. It is the party that treats the issues of border protection and domestic security most conscientiously.
At the same time, the 30-year-old speaks out against the AfD in an interview with the Standard. For example, he accuses the party of being inconsistent with the exclusion. “In terms of content, I didn’t differ from the previous or subsequent speaker,” he criticizes. As a further example of the double standards at the AfD, Eichwald cites the treatment of the Thuringian AfD leader Björn Höcke, who was convicted for using the expression “Everything for Germany”. “How am I worse than that I should be expelled from the party?” he criticizes.
Eichwald also criticizes other AfD program items. For example, he is bothered by the fact that the AfD wants to reduce taxes for the rich. Or Alice Weidel’s statement that Stalin and Hitler were brothers in spirit. “For me as a German from Russia, this is a disgusting and blatant relativization of the war of annihilation against the Slavs,” said Eichwald. History should not be forgotten or wrongly revised, which is what Weidel did with it. It is therefore clear to him:
“Anyone who does that will never be allowed to become chancellor.”
He further accuses the AfD of lacking democratic understanding. He actually wanted to run for the position of chairman of the new youth organization in order to attract even more attention. But he was harassed and asked not to do that. He also hopes that the AfD will not become number one in the next elections or even get an absolute majority. Rather, he hopes that the CDU will “come back to the right-wing conservative milieu.” “We cannot stand up and say that the AfD is our last hope,” says Eichwald.
Eichwald also confirms to the Standard that he didn’t mean his speech all that seriously. He had a plan with his content, style and tone: he wanted to attract attention. “I wanted to criticize society,” says Eichwald. Because:
“We have to talk in Germany about the fact that I said things that many people say behind closed doors or behind closed doors, at the regulars’ table and in the AfD.”
However, Eichwald does not want to call it satire. Instead, he wants to be understood based on the psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung, who used the term “persona”: a kind of mask to make a certain impression on others, but which at the same time hides the essence of the individual. “I used a persona and adapted to the youth of the AfD,” says Eichwald. Looking back, he is generally satisfied with his action. Even if he criticizes:
“People need to discuss the content more, not the rolling R. That didn’t work out so well.”
About himself, Alexander Eichwald explained that he studied political science and sociology in Bielefeld. He currently lives in seclusion and only leaves the house when it is dark. He is in trouble at work: because of his action he will lose his job as a personnel dispatcher. He isn’t surprised by this. But he is of the opinion: “Sending the message was more important to me.” (dab)