By Maria Martinez BERLIN, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Germany cannot defend itself without taking on new debt, Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil said on Tuesday, justifying rising defence spending amid growing threats.

The Alternative for Germany (AfD) has surged to first place in state elections in Saxony-Anhalt, winning 44% of the vote. But the anti-immigrant, pro-Russian party fell three seats short of an absolute majority,

The anti-migration party, which mainstream parties refuse to work with, had hoped to form Germany’s first far-right state government since World War II.

The vote marks a major breakthrough for the party and a fresh challenge to Germany's mainstream political establishment.

WASHINGTON, Sept 8 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump attributed the win of Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in a state election to existing immigration rules and regulations that he cast as "horrible.

RAGUHN-JESSNITZ, Germany — The first brick to fall in Germany’s so-called firewall against the far right was this town of some 9,000 people in the small eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.

French minister calls AfD’s victory a grave moment, warning of growing nationalism and its impact on European unity.

Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) won 43.8% of the vote in Sunday's Saxony-Anhalt state election, its strongest regional result. The win revives questions about what a bigger AfD footprint would mean for Bitcoin (BTC) policy in Europe's largest economy.