Germans OK plan to remove spy chief

BERLIN — Leaders of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s governing coalition reached a deal Sunday to resolve a standoff over the future of the country’s domestic intelligence chief, a dispute that has further dented the image of their fractious six-month-old alliance.

The center-left Social Democrats have insisted that Hans-Georg Maassen be removed as head of the Bundesamt fur Verfassungsschutz spy agency for appearing to downplay recent violence against migrants, but conservative Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has stood by him.

Last week, coalition leaders agreed to replace Maassen as head of the spy agency but give him a new job as a deputy interior minister, a promotion with a hefty pay increase. The move prompted a backlash from furious Social Democrats, prompting party leader Andrea Nahles to call for the deal’s renegotiation.

On Sunday, coalition leaders agreed instead to make Maassen a “special adviser” at the Interior Ministry with responsibility for “European and international issues,” Seehofer said. He will remain at his current pay level.

“I think it is a very good signal that we took the criticism of our decision on Tuesday evening seriously and were able to correct it,” Nahles told reporters. She declared that “overall, the foundation has been laid for us to return to substantive work.”