Germany’s Foreign Office defended classifying the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party as right-wing extremist, after U.S. officials criticized the move.

Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned it, with Rubio calling it “tyranny in disguise.”

The German intelligence agency, Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz, found that AfD’s ethnic-based ideology undermines Germany’s democratic values.

The party, which won a record 152 seats in the February federal elections, was already labeled extremist in three states.

AfD leaders dismissed the designation as politically motivated, while German authorities argued it was based on a thorough investigation, the BBC has reported.

The controversy comes as calls grow for the AfD to be banned, with government officials citing concerns over the party’s anti-democratic stance.

Written by B.C. Begley