GERMANY Failure to form coalition creates political crisis
BERLIN — Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany faced the greatest crisis of her career on Monday after negotiations to form a new government collapsed, shaking a country that is Europe’s political and economic anchor.
The breakdown abruptly raised the prospect of new elections in Germany. It came less than two months after the last elections seemed to assure that Merkel, an icon of Western democracy and values, would remain Germany’s leader for a fourth term.
The chancellor said she remained hopeful about forming a majority government. But if forced to choose, Merkel said, she would prefer to go through new elections rather than try to lead a minority government.
“I don’t want to say never, but I am very skeptical, and believe that new elections would be the better way forward,” the chancellor told the public broadcaster ARD.
At a time when the European Union is facing a host of pressing problems, from Brexit negotiations with Britain, to the rise of right-wing populism, to separatism in Spain’s Catalonia region, the possibility of political instability in a normally reliable Germany sent tremors through the continent.
The collapse of talks reflected the deep reluctance of Merkel’s conservative bloc and prospective coalition partners — the ecology-minded Greens and pro-business Free Democrats — to compromise over key positions. The Free Democrats quit the talks late Sunday, citing what they called an atmosphere of insincerity and mistrust.
“There is no coalition of the willing to form a government,” said Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff, director of the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund. “This is uncharted territory since 1949. We’re facing a protracted period of political immobility. Not only is this not going to go away soon, there is no clear path out.”
Merkel met in private Monday with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who as head of state is charged with trying to break the deadlock in coalition talks. He could appoint a chancellor to lead a minority government or, failing that, set in motion the process for new elections.
The potential for instability in Germany would be a major blow to the European Union. Merkel has been the region’s dominant political figure of the past decade, credited with guiding the bloc through the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis and, more recently, providing a powerful counterpoint to populists across the Continent and beyond.