The Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is a far-right political party in Germany. Last week, in an election for the parliament of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt in eastern Germany, the AfD won 43.8% of the vote and secured 39 of 83 seats.

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Friedrich Merz, the German Chancellor and head of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Germany's ruling party, expressed shock at the result and said it was the CDU's most severe election defeat in years. According to media reports, when asked about the Saxony-Anhalt election outcome, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said that the Commission does not comment on elections.

Comfortably numb

This election result is deeply significant. For starters, this happened in a country that has witnessed and experienced horrors that remain amongst the darkest chapters in European history. Since then, Germany has become a beacon of democracy, the EU's leading country, and for decades, Europe's economic powerhouse. I am shocked by this result, but admittedly not surprised. I am, however, shocked by the EU leadership's lack of reaction to this result. The AfD election result should have sent shockwaves far beyond the borders of Germany, and yet sadly in Brussels they seem to sit comfortably numb. The Saxony-Anhalt election result was a political warning of the highest order. It says something uncomfortable about Germany - and more so that it happened in Eastern Germany, once a communist state, until it ceased to exist in 1990, when it reunified with West Germany, as well as about the European Union and the state of its mainstream politics. The AfD was founded in 2013 as a Eurosceptic party and has since then adopted a hard-line position towards nationalism.

Soul searching

In Germany, this election result must be thoroughly analysed, and in Brussels, a soul-searching exercise is a must. Beyond Brussels too, this result needs to be taken very seriously. I guess that this result may be, at least in part, a verdict on the failure of mainstream political parties to understand people's needs and concerns. Experience has shown that voters do not necessarily turn to radical parties because they happen to become extremists overnight. It is deeper and more complex than that and is very often the result of disillusion with politics and politicians, broken promises, economic and financial hardships, mass migration, soaring inflation, unaffordable energy prices, crime, lack of employment opportunities, and corruption.

Lack of synergy

This is where I believe Brussels should pay particular attention. There seems to be an increasing lack of synergy between the people at the helm of EU institutions and European citizens. From Brussels, people hear about fiscal rules, transition targets, competitiveness, whilst citizens in many European countries are living from pay cheque to pay cheque, worried about their safety, and unable to find decently paid jobs. When that gap becomes too wide, extremist parties, such as the AfD in Germany, occupy it. Germany is not alone. Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National, a far-right political party, has a good chance of winning the next presidential election. In Malta, the situation couldn't be more different. The people have just given Labour its fourth consecutive mandate. Our economy is booming, employment is among the highest in the EU, inflation is kept in check thanks to the government's help, and energy prices are, thanks to government subsidies, the lowest in Europe. But we too should remain vigilant and ensure that we never stop listening to people's needs and concerns, and act upon them. I have always believed that mainstream parties cannot defeat populism simply by calling it populism. We must understand why people are attracted to it. Mainstream political parties across Europe must be humane and responsive; if not, voters will look elsewhere. The AfD result should therefore be a wake-up call for Berlin and Brussels alike. 

Regulating AI

This week, US global tech stocks fell after calls for Artificial Intelligence development to slow down. AI now makes up somewhere between 30% and 40% of the US stock exchange. The AI leaders at the helm of the largest AI companies are now openly talking about the risks associated with the most advanced AI systems. It is becoming increasingly clear that whilst AI is of significant help to mankind, especially but not limited to healthcare, the AI technology could pose a serious risk to humanity. This threat cannot be taken lightly. If a rogue country uses AI to attack another country's critical national infrastructure it could wreak devastating havoc.

The situation is complex. Some of the tech firms building AI ask for more regulation. Sam Altman, the OpenAI boss, earlier this week supported a call by Anthropic head Dario Amodei for firms to "pace" the development of cutting-edge AI. Altman defined 'pacing' not to mean stopping, but that the development should be slower. But at the same time, they argue that too much regulation would allow China to race ahead of the US. The way forward is unclear, and deeply uncertain. In the meantime, AI technology continues to advance at an extraordinary pace.