Germany braces for poll as talks falter
Chancellor Merkel in crisis as other parties play hardball
berlin — Efforts to form a threeway governing coalition in Germany collapsed on Monday, pitching Europe’s biggest power into political crisis, and its president told parties they owed it to voters and European neighbours to form a government.
The major obstacle to a deal was immigration, according to Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was forced into negotiations after bleeding support in a September 24 election to the far right in a backlash at her 2015 decision to let in over one million migrants.
The failure of exploratory coalition talks involving her conservative bloc, the liberal pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and environmentalist Greens raises the prospect of new elections and casts doubt over her future after 12 years in power. Merkel said later she prefers snap polls to leading a minority government.
Negotiations broke down after the FDP withdrew saying they had found insufficient common ground with her Christian Democratic/ Christian Social Union bloc and the Greens.
President Walter Steinmeier said Germany was now facing the worst governing crisis in the 68year history of its post-World War Two democracy. After meeting Merkel, he warned parties not to shirk their democratic duties — remarks seemingly targeted at the FDP and Social Democrats (SPD), who on Monday ruled out renewing their “grand coalition” with the conservatives.
“Inside our country, but also outside, in particular in our European neighbourhood, there would be concern and a lack of understanding if politicians in the biggest and economically strongest country (in Europe) did not live up to their responsibilities,” he said in a statement.
Business leaders also called for a swift return to talks.
With German leadership seen as crucial for a European Union grappling with governance reform and Britain’s impending exit, FDP leader Christian Lindner’s announcement that he was pulling out spooked investors and sent the euro falling in the morning.
Both the euro and European shares recovered from early selling, while German bond yields steadied near 1-1/2 week lows, as confidence about the outlook for the eurozone economy helped investors brush off worries about the risk of Germany going to the polls again soon.
Steinmeier’s intervention suggests he regards new elections — desired by half of Germany’s voters according to a poll — as a last resort. —
berlin — Chancellor Angela Merkel was scrambling to drag Germany out of crisis on Monday after high-stakes talks to form a new government collapsed, potentially forcing Europe’s top economy into snap elections.
Germany now faces weeks, if not months, of paralysis with a lameduck government that is unlikely to take bold policy action at home or on the European stage.
With no other viable coalition in sight, Germany may be forced to hold new elections that risk being as inconclusive as September’s poll.
Merkel, whose liberal refugee policy has proved deeply divisive, had been forced to seek an alliance with an unlikely group of parties after the ballot left her without a majority.
But following more than a month of gruelling negotiations, the leader of the pro-business FDP, Christian Lindner, walked out of talks overnight, saying there was no “basis of trust” to forge a government with Merkel’s conservative alliance CDU-CSU and the ecologist Greens.
“It is better not to govern than to govern badly,” he said, adding that the parties did not share “a common vision on modernising” Germany.
Voicing regret at the FDP’s decision, Merkel vowed to steer Germany through the crisis.
“As chancellor... I will do everything to ensure that this country comes out well through this difficult time,” she said.
News magazine Der Spiegel called the breakdown in negotiations a “catastrophe” for Merkel and said Germany, long seen as an island of stability, was having its “Brexit moment, its Trump moment”.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who has sought Merkel’s backing for an ambitious EU reform plan, expressed concern about Germany’s political deadlock. He said he hoped Berlin would remain a “stable and strong” partner to allow the two partners to “move forward together,” his office said in a statement.
The euro and Germany’s bluechip DAX index fell slightly on the news of the stalemate, but later back edged up, erasing early losses.
The acrimonious negotiations
building a government has always been a difficult process of give and take, but the mandate to form a government is... perhaps the highest mandate given by voters.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier,
German President
stumbled on a series of issues including immigration.
Merkel let in more than one million asylum seekers since 2015, sparking a backlash that allowed the far-right AfD party to win its first seats in parliament.
Its parliamentary co-leader Alexander Gauland welcomed the
We decided that we should use the next days to overcome the remaining differences. such a historic project ... should not fail due to a few missing hours.”
Christian Lindner, head of Free Democrats
collapse of the talks, saying that Merkel had “failed” and that his party “looks forward to potential new elections” in which it stands to make strong gains.
The negotiating parties also differed on environmental issues, with the Greens wanting to phase out dirty coal and combustion-en-
We hope for Germany and for europe that our main partner is stable and strong so we can move forward together
Emmanuel Macron,
French President
gine cars, while the conservatives and FDP emphasised the need to protect industry and jobs.
The Greens angrily deplored the failure to form a government, saying they had believed a deal could be done despite the differences and accusing the FDP of negotiating in bad faith. —