■ Merkel’s top allies urge parties to stitch alliance
3- weeks’ time given to find a solution
Berlin, Nov. 21: Two veteran allies of Chancellor Angela Merkel appealed to Germany’s parties on Tuesday to strike a compromise and form a stable government that could drag Europe’s biggest economy out of a political impasse.
The collapse of talks between Merkel’s conservative bloc, the pro- business Free Democrats ( FDP) and environmentalist Greens has thrown Germany into political uncertainty and raised the prospect of new elections.
It has cast doubt over whether Mr Merkel, Europe’s most powerful leader after 12 years in office, will serve a fourth term after her conservatives bled support to the far- right in a Sept. 24 election, though still won the most seats.
There are wider implications too for Europe since the collapse of talks means the euro zone’s ambitious plans for deeper economic integration could now be put on hold, euro zone officials said in Brussels on Tuesday.
Ms Merkel’s former finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, now in the impartial role of parliamentary president, said compromise was the order of the day while chancellery chief Peter Altmaier gave parties three weeks to sort out the mess. “We must be in a situation in the next three weeks where there is clarity about whether there can be a stable government on the basis of this election result,” Altmaier, also acting finance minister, told ZDF television.
Ms Merkel has said she prefers new elections to an unstable minority government. Until a government is agreed, she continues as acting chancellor and previous ministers remain in post, while the newly- elected parliament also proceeds with business.
Pressure is growing on the Social Democrats whose leader Martin Schulz has refused to contemplate re- entering a Merkel- led government after voters punished them for sharing power.