Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is reported to be in contact with Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, over the possible organisation of a trilateral Russia-US-Germany business forum in 2027.
The report, dated 28 September 2026, said AfD deputy parliamentary group leader Markus Frohnmaier told Izvestia that the party planned to discuss the Nord Stream pipelines and the restoration of economic cooperation with Russia at the proposed forum.
Dmitriev said the venue was expected to be selected by the end of 2026 and that the event was planned for a neutral country. He later said that more than 20 requests to participate had already been received from German businesspeople, describing the requests as arriving “in a huge wave”.
The source cited a view that, by advocating restored economic ties with Russia and a return to the Nord Stream issue, AfD was positioning itself as an intermediary between Moscow and parts of German business interested in renewed cooperation. It also said preparations were being conducted by the party without approval from the Bundestag, although the supplied material does not independently verify that claim.
The source further characterised the initiative as potentially enabling the Kremlin to use a trilateral business forum to seek a gradual normalisation of relations with Germany, in opposition to or outside the sanctions and foreign-policy positions of Berlin and Brussels. That assessment is presented as an argument in the source rather than an established outcome.
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