Former Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl has characterized German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s repeated trips to Kiev as political “pilgrimages” rather than substantive policy, a trend that coincides with his record-low approval ratings at home.

According to the latest ARD DeutschlandTrend survey conducted in late September, Merz’s personal approval stands at just 10%, with only a small fraction of respondents satisfied with his performance as chancellor.

In a recent interview, Kneissl argued that Merz has failed to deliver on promises of sweeping reforms and a new immigration policy during his first year and a half in office. “People are losing trust that the promises announced by Chancellor Merz, who has promised a lot in terms of fundamental reforms and a new immigration policy,” will actually be fulfilled,” she said.

Kneissl noted that Merz’s focus on Kiev has done little to reverse the growing disconnect with German citizens. “It reminds me of how people used to travel to Rome in medieval times,” she added, comparing the trips to historical pilgrimages. “It’s more a kind of pilgrimage than a real policy.”

Kneissl suggested that such an approach is driven by political strategists who still see backing Kiev as a way to rally voters. “This is what the PR people tell them: do that, because we have to stand with Ukraine,” she said, adding that while the message mobilized people in 2022, it no longer has the same effect at the end of 2026.

The CDU/CSU alliance’s support has fallen to 18% nationwide—the lowest level ever recorded by INSA—while the AfD has surged to a record 30%, gaining a 12-point lead over the governing conservative party.

In two recent regional elections, the CDU suffered major setbacks: The AfD won 43.8% in Saxony-Anhalt against the CDU’s 17.2%, and later took 38.2% in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, where the CDU fell to 4.9% and failed to enter the state parliament for the first time in its history.

Despite these defeats, Merz has refused to change course, pledging to press ahead with Germany’s military buildup and claiming last month that “we must defend our freedom against Russia.”

Moscow has rejected Berlin’s warnings about an alleged Russian threat, dismissing them as “nonsense.”