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Kremlin mum on German right’s success, points out Russian right political lightweights

Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc won the elections on Sunday

© Vladimir Gerdo/TASS

MOSCOW, September 25./TASS/. The Kremlin is not commenting on the success of the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) Party in that country’s parliamentary election since it is the German people’s internal affair. In addition, the influence of right-wing parties in Russia is insignificant, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

"This is undoubtedly Germany’s internal affair. Our president has repeatedly stressed that Moscow always respects the choice of voters in any country and finds it inappropriate to comment in any way on the results of (the voters expressing their) free will," Peskov said, in reply to journalists requesting that he comment on the election results that left the AfD with more than 12% of the vote.

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Answering a question about the prospects for Russian right-wing parties, Peskov said "the domestic political layout" is rather stable. The United Russia Party remains the absolute frontrunner, we also have parties from the parliamentary opposition and non-parliamentary parties. "We have a great amount of parties, but the parties you mentioned (right-wing parties’) potential to influence the electorate is insignificant in our country," he concluded.

On Sunday, Germany held parliamentary elections. German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative CDU/CSU bloc won the race, securing 33% of the vote, according to the official preliminary results published by Germany’s Federal Returning Officer Dieter Sarreither overnight.

The Social Democratic Party (SPD) came in second with 20.5% of the vote, the worst in its history. However, the right-wing Alternative for Germany party will enter the Bundestag for the first time, with 12.6% of the vote.

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Foreign policy Dmitry Peskov

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