* Weidel wants to lift boycott of Russian oil, gas

* Comments show potential fragility of alliance backing

Ukraine

* AfD dominates polling before two eastern state elections

By John O'Donnell

BERLIN, June 30 (Reuters) - Germany should end a boycott of

Russian oil and gas to bolster its flagging economy, the leader

of the far-right Alternative for Germany, Alice Weidel, told

Reuters as she outlined the party's ambitions to lead a national

government.

Weidel said the AfD can win two key federal state elections

in the coming months, describing them as milestones to securing

the post of German chancellor as soon as the next national

elections due by 2029.

"Cheap energy from Russia was the secret of the success of

'Made in Germany'. We need it back," Weidel said.

"The loss of this energy has set us back years. Hundreds of

thousands of jobs have been lost. It has made us dependent on

the United States, which sells us energy at far higher prices."

SEES ELECTIONS AS 'DECISIVE MILESTONES'

Before the sanctions imposed over Moscow's invasion of

Ukraine in 2022, Russia supplied more than a third of Germany's

crude oil imports ​and more than half of its natural gas.

Germany has also struggled to recover from the shock caused

by the shutdown of the key undersea Nord Stream pipeline, which

was crippled by explosions in September 2022.

The country's industry, rattled by a spike in energy costs

that followed, remains in the doldrums. Adding to the gloom, car

giant Volkswagen is considering cutting as many as 100,000 jobs.

Weidel's comments highlight the potential fragility of the

Western alliance underpinning support for Ukraine. Although

Germany's current government backs Ukraine, the population is

more divided.

Weidel made the remarks ahead of September elections in two

key eastern German states, Saxony-Anhalt and

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where the AfD is dominating polls.

Should the AfD win control, this would see those regional

governments challenge Berlin's policy on migration, which they

say is too generous, rejecting the financial burden on local

governments.

It would upend the consensus model of committee-style

government in Germany and potentially give the AfD a stepping

stone to national rule.

"Saxony-Anhalt and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern are decisive

milestones," Weidel said.

"If we win in Saxony-Anhalt, then Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

will probably follow. I can see the AfD in the chancellery

either by the next elections or the ones after."

For mainstream political parties such as Chancellor

Friedrich Merz's Christian Democrats, which have rejected

cooperation with the AfD, a victory by the far-right party in

Saxony-Anhalt would deal a blow to the so-called firewall of

coalitions to block the AfD from power.

Energy costs and the prospect of cheaper Russian energy

could win over voters.

Germany's relationship with Russia carries more weight in

the east, which was under Soviet rule until the fall of the

Berlin Wall more than 35 years ago. Many there take a

sympathetic stance towards Russia and a critical view of

Germany's military protector, the United States.

'WE WILL NOT TURN EVERYTHING ON ITS HEAD'

Weidel's comments on Russia follow a visit earlier this

month by senior AfD lawmaker Markus Frohnmaier to Russia. He

met Alexei Miller, the head of Russian energy giant Gazprom

, and called for a reopening of the Nord Stream gas

pipeline.

Frohnmaier rebuffed criticism of his trip, saying he

understood that U.S. investors were examining reopening the Nord

Stream route to Germany, a move that could see Germany pay a fee

to draw Russian gas.

"We have to be careful in Germany that we don't miss the

window of opportunity to get back into the Russian market," he

told Reuters. "Mr Miller said it would take a three-month

timeframe for the gas supply to be resumed."

Roderich Kiesewetter, a member of parliament from Merz's

Christian Democrats, said the AfD's pro-Russian stance was

distorting the public debate in Germany.

"The romanticisation of Russia is being used by the AfD, in

particular with an eye on the upcoming elections in eastern

Germany," Kiesewetter said.

Weidel dismissed accusations that her party was extremist,

as it was classified by Germany's spy agency last year.

"The way we see ourselves and the way our political rivals

judge us, are miles apart," she said. "People describe us as

far-right. In truth, we are a party for the regular person. We

will not turn everything on its head if we get into power."