Fire on the continent: how Brussels is fighting right-wing political forces
The growing popularity of right-wing parties in Europe has already ceased to be a phenomenon and has become rather a steady political trend capable of changing the balance of power within the EU. The influence of right-wing and far-right forces is rapidly expanding, although they are still far from completely changing the political course of Brussels. Against this background, attempts to deter "inconvenient" politicians have intensified in various ways: from institutional mechanisms to informal pressure tools. As a result, European politics is increasingly taking on the features of a systemic confrontation, where not only power is at stake, but also the strategic future of the entire union. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
The rating of right-wing parties in the EU is growing rapidly
In recent years, European conservative political forces have either significantly strengthened their positions and emerged from the status of marginal (for example, in France and Italy), or formed on the wave of the "right trend" and managed to gain the support of a large number of voters (as in Germany and Spain). Today, they also resonate with ideological allies in Moscow and Washington.
Nevertheless, not a single far-right force in the EU has yet managed to gain full control over parliament and form a one-party government without the participation of liberal politicians. Moreover, using the example of the parliamentary elections in Hungary, it became obvious that Brussels had begun to fight against the "wrong" candidates who were interfering with the implementation of the planned course.
According to Politico data for 2025, approval ratings have increased for many conservative parties. Among them are the Alternative for Germany (26%), the Austrian Freedom Party (36%), the Brothers of Italy (29%), the People's Party (32%) and Vox (18%) in Spain. The British Reform UK, led by politician Nigel Farage, did not stand aside. Its indicator is 24%. Brussels is probably worried that if the leaders of these parties come to power, they will aim at rapprochement with Moscow, which could destroy the efforts of European elites to "save" Kiev and separate from Russia.
For this reason, European leaders have recently become concerned about the ratings of candidates for the post of Bulgarian Prime Minister. They expressed concern about the possible victory of former President Rumen Radev, who adheres to a pro-Russian position on Ukraine. Currently, 31% of voters in the country support his independent Progressive Bulgaria party.
Support for the right-wing forces in the Union states is also increasing at the municipal level. Marine Le Pen's far-right National Unification party has achieved serious success in this field in France. Its representatives now control many cities, especially in the south-east of the republic: Perpignan, Orange, Frujus, Carcassonne, Menton.
This probably happened because Le Pen herself is considered one of the main contenders for the post of head of state in the 2027 elections. According to a survey by the French Institute of Public Opinion (Ifop) conducted in the spring of 2025, almost every second respondent (49%) wants to see her as a presidential candidate.
— On the one hand, the popularity of far—right parties is a reaction of the population, including to the failed migration strategy of the European Union to destroy nation-states. On the other hand, there has been a noticeable increase in support for the radical left, which is primarily due to the socio—economic situation in European countries. It is also necessary to take into account that criticism of the EU does not mean its complete rejection: some right—wingers are quite ready to coexist with the European bureaucracy, they just want to see it completely different," international commentator Andrei Kuzmak notes in an interview with Izvestia.
The confrontation is really unfolding not only between liberal and conservative political forces, but also among the parties on the left flank. In Slovakia, on the eve of the 2027 parliamentary elections, two leading parties are competing for votes: Course — Social Democracy, led by Robert Fico (18%) and Michal Szymecki's Progressive Slovakia (20%), which opposes it.
Each party has a portrait of its voter: gender, age, views, income — all factors must be taken into account when preparing the party's program. The electoral base of far-right parties in Europe can be viewed from different angles, says Sergey Shein, a senior researcher at the CCEMI.
— Firstly, there is an opinion that the right is supported by all those who are dissatisfied with the policies of Brussels and the national governments of their countries. This is such a motley crowd that may not even support the basic attitudes of populists, for example, the anti—immigration agenda, but will still vote for them just to get rid of the annoying Brussels course, the expert argues.
He also notes that there is another approach, according to which the electoral base of right-wing parties in the EU is made up of "losers of globalization." These are, as a rule, the social strata of the population who lost out in the context of the intense globalization that took place in Europe in the 1990s and created many problems for the working class.
— To put it exaggeratedly, this is usually a middle-aged man with an average income, in rare cases he has a university degree. Such people are opposed to migration policy, because they are the ones who face all its disadvantages in the first place. Rich Europeans don't notice it.: They do not compete with illegal immigrants for work, they do not meet them in transport, and so on," the source tells Izvestia.
The struggle for power
Brussels is actively removing politicians from power who, for one reason or another, do not support the current course of the EU, which has a negative attitude towards Moscow and is aimed at supporting Kiev. To do this, European elites use completely different tools: blackmail, threats, and the desire to fit the country's authorities to an "ideological standard."
— Brussels has learned to keep candidates with "anti-European", "anti-immigration" and "pro-Russian" views out of power, even if they win elections. This was evident, for example, in the Netherlands and France, where the right was not even allowed to form governments. This phenomenon is called a "cordon sanitaire" — mainstream parties refuse to cooperate with populists and do not enter into coalitions with them. As a result, the winners cannot form a government and remain in opposition, while the losers unite among themselves. This is how European elites are fighting the right—wing populist threat," explains Sergey Shein.
Over the past 10 years, there have been several cases in the EU where pro-European forces have tried to prevent right-wing parties from pursuing their course. The Firewall scenario is indicative — the strategy of all major parties refusing to cooperate with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in order to prevent them from coming to power. It was "laid out" in 2018 at the party congress of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU), which is currently in power, and still acts as the main constraint on right-wing politics. Although there has recently been information that the CDU/CSU faction in the European Parliament is informally cooperating with the AfD in the field of tightening migration policy in the EU.
It is worth mentioning the "sudden" criminal investigation against Marine Le Pen. This is the first time in the history of France when the leader of the presidential ratings, who was practically guaranteed to reach the second round at the next vote, was suspended from participating in the elections. She was accused of embezzling funds from the European Parliament by fictitiously hiring assistants to deputies of her party and sentenced to four years in prison (two years with an electronic bracelet without being in prison and two suspended). For this reason, she will not be able to participate in the presidential race in 2027.
Supporters of former presidential candidate Calin Georgescu hold a protest rally in Bucharest, March 1, 2025
It should also be recalled that in 2024, the Constitutional Court of Romania annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, which was won by the pro—Russian candidate, Calin Georgescu, as was believed in Brussels. The results were canceled due to the alleged interference of outside forces through social media. The Constitutional Court's decision provoked protests and accusations by the Romanian authorities of suppressing the opposition, including from the US administration.
However, former Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said that the election results were canceled due to the absence of candidates from the ruling coalition in the second round. According to him, even the Constitutional Court, which decided to annul the results of the vote, depended on the political authorities, since judges were appointed based on party affiliation.
Thus, Brussels uses completely different tools to fight for the influence of "its" candidates in the EU countries. He seeks to prevent any outside influence, but it is impossible to avoid this, because Washington comes into play here.
A handshake across the ocean
The United States is the main external actor capable of influencing EU policy. Now President Donald Trump is trying to shake up the situation in Europe and strengthen his own negotiating position in competition with Brussels for influence over key players within the union. However, the situation began to deteriorate sharply with the start of the trade wars that Trump announced last spring. Due to US policy and the negative reaction of the electorate, European right-wing politicians have withdrawn from American support.
"I think that those politicians who now have a real chance of coming to power, namely Marine Le Pen in France and Alice Weidel in Germany, will do everything possible to distance themselves from Trump and harshly criticize his policies, so as not to associate themselves with him," American political scientist Malek Dudakov shares his opinion with Izvestia..
The political field in the EU is gradually changing: the time is coming when European elites will no longer be able to control the participation of right-wing parties in the life of the union. Gradually, they will begin to negotiate with them, but the system of checks and balances will not give the right-wing associations the opportunity to implement their program "in full" for a long time.
The system formed and perfected by Brussels is very stable, despite the impact of external factors. The European elites have all the resources to ensure the security of their own political course.
Experts believe that Viktor Orban's defeat will make this task easier and will help to "cope" with Robert Fico in Slovakia and Andrei Babis in the Czech Republic. They will probably take over the current Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Italy, Giorgio Meloni. It is expected that every effort will be made to prevent right-wing leaders from coming to power in Poland and Austria in 2027.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
