German Chancellor Rules Out Coalition with Left Party After Local Elections

Berlin, Jan 1 (KUNA) — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who leads the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), ruled out on Tuesday the possibility of forming a coalition government with the Left Party following the elections scheduled for next Sunday in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.

In a statement in Berlin, Merz said there were “fundamental and very important” differences between the CDU and both the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the Left Party, making cooperation with either “excluded.”

When asked about the possibility of forming a minority government led by the CDU, Merz said that genuine cooperation means participating in the government and establishing a joint government program, which he does not consider feasible with either the AfD or the Left Party.

The CDU’s position is based on a decision approved by the party conference in 2018, which rejected forming coalitions or similar forms of cooperation with these two parties. (End)