The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has formally quit the far-right European Identity and Democracy (ID) political group in the European Parliament, deputy leader Peter Boehringer announced at the AfD's party conference on Sunday.
The move has been expected since the ID group expelled the AfD in the run-up to June's European Parliament elections.
That came after the AfD's top candidate in the campaign, Maximillian Krah, made highly controversial remarks about the Nazi SS paramilitary in an interview with an Italian newspaper, saying that those who joined the Nazi SS should not necessarily be considered criminals.
The ID group includes France's far-right nationalist National Rally (RN) and the Dutch far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), among others.
The AfD only formally joined the ID party last year, although it had previously been a member of the ID group in the European Parliament.
Krah's comments prompted the AfD to ban him from campaign appearances and exclude him from the AfD's parliamentary faction in the European Parliament, although those moves did not bring them closer with the ID group.
