(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAR 8 - Germany's conservative election
winner Friedrich Merz came a step closer Saturday towards
forming a government which he has pledged will revive Europe's
top economy and its armed forces with massive new spending. The
bold moves are part of his plan to rebuild Berlin's standing in
Europe, which Merz has said must respond to the sweeping changes
driven by US President Donald Trump that have rocked the
transatlantic alliance. Merz's CDU/CSU bloc and the Social
Democrats (SPD) of defeated Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday
announced they had wrapped up exploratory talks and would now
move onto the next, decisive stage of full-fledged coalition
negotiations. "We concluded the consultations between CDU/CSU
and SPD and we have drawn up a joint exploratory paper," Merz
said. (ANSA-AFP).
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
