Свен Хорнауф. Фото: hornauf.org
Sven Hornauf, a member of the Brandenburg state parliament from the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), plans to travel to Belarus by bus. The delegation intends to revive ties between twin cities, dpa reports.
The trip to Belarus is planned for November. Hornauf believes that in this way he is sending a signal in support of mutual understanding between the two peoples. The Märkische Oderzeitung previously reported this.
According to Hornauf, he also plans to help organize a trip to Russia in April 2027. The politician from Frankfurt (Oder) said it was necessary to ensure “that normal, regular contacts can once again exist directly at the people-to-people level and that the general political situation, regardless of which side defines it, does not obstruct these contacts.”
In response to an inquiry, Hornauf said that between 30 and 40 people, mostly non-party members, want to take part in the planned trip to Belarus. However, in addition to several BSW members, he also named representatives of the Greens and the Alternative for Germany (AfD) among the participants. Further preparatory meetings are planned.
According to Hornauf, the largest group will come from Frankfurt (Oder). He announced a visit by a delegation from the city to Vitsyebsk from November 6 to 11.
Other participants in the bus trip intend to revive previous twinning ties in Minsk and other cities. Potsdam, for example, previously maintained relations with the Belarusian capital.
In the spring, Hornauf was one of the initiators of a visit by BSW members and supporters to the Russian Embassy in Berlin. He has also faced criticism for supporting several AfD proposals.
In 2024, the lawmaker, who works as a lawyer in Frankfurt (Oder), criticized the deployment of the Arrow 3 missile defense system at the Bundeswehr’s Holzdorf air base during coalition talks between the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and BSW on forming a government. The SPD-BSW coalition in Brandenburg collapsed in January this year.