Europe News Euroviews. Merz is chiseling economic decline into the German constitution Friedrich Merz, who once presented himself as the last line of defence against debt madness, is now set to push Germany’s new debt into the trillion-euro range. This program will accelerate the country's economic decline, Joachim Nikolaus Steinhöfel writes. 10/03/2025
Europe News Preliminary talks conclude on new coalition government for Germany According to Friedrich Merz, his conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the Social Democratic Party leaders agreed on common principles on migration and the economy. 08/03/2025
Europe News Merz secures billion-euro deal for German military and infrastructure A provision would exempt defence spending above 1% of GDP from debt brake rules, enabling Germany to increase military spending without limit. 04/03/2025
World News Merz calls Trump-Zelenskyy spat at White House 'manufactured escalation' The CDU leader said Europe must be prepared to act independently. 03/03/2025
Brussels, My Love? Brussels, my love? Who is Friedrich Merz? In this edition, we reflect on the big takeaways from the German federal elections and discuss the recent wave of copycat violent attacks across Europe. 01/03/2025
Europe News CDU and SPD start talks in bid to form next German government Friedrich Merz, the leader of the Christian Democrats, has ruled out a coalition with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which finished second in last week's elections. 28/02/2025
Europe News Merz travels to Paris for dinner with Macron The winner of Germany's parliamentary elections has travelled to Paris to meet the French president for a working dinner on Wednesday. 26/02/2025
Europe News What's at stake for Europe after the German election? With domestic problems and foreign policy crises looming large, the pressure is on to form a new government in Berlin. 25/02/2025
Europe News Germany's Merz ‘resolute and determined,' former EU chief Barroso says Merz’s centre-right CDU emerged as the largest party in Sunday’s federal elections, winning 208 seats in the 630-seat German parliament. 25/02/2025
Radio Schuman Will Merz rekindle the Franco-German flame? The Franco-German partnership, historically central to key decisions in Brussels, has been strained over the past three years. This is due in part to domestic political crises in both France and Germany, as well as significant differences in the leadership styles of French President Emmanuel Macron. 25/02/2025
Europe News Germany’s Merz marks shift by betting on an EU less dependent on US Friedrich Merz, who led the Christian Democratic Union to victory at the polls, referred to a strong Europe independent of the United States as his “absolute priority”. Many in Brussels now expect a more stable government in Berlin will mean a stronger German leadership 24/02/2025
Europe News Merz: German government coalition talks between CDU and SPD to begin The centre-right party's leader Friedrich Merz said CDU and SPD are to enter talks to form a coalition, one day after the German election on Sunday. 24/02/2025
Germany Germany’s Merz aims to lead Europe with US involvement 'dwindling' The centre-right CDU's leader has committed himself to taking a more active role in the bloc in the midst of what he says is declining transatlantic interest in Europe. 24/02/2025
Germany BSW's Sahra Wagenknecht mulls challenging German election results The left-wing conservative BSW party fell just short of the 5% threshold to enter the Bundestag with a nail-biting share of 4.97% of the vote on Sunday. 24/02/2025
Tech News German centre-right win heralds likely digital ministry Industry groups have called for a ministry dedicated to digital affairs. 24/02/2025
Europe News German elections: CDU wins, Merz aims for coalition by Easter With all constituencies counted, the centre-right Christian Democratic Union has claimed victory, while minnows, including the left-conservative BSW, barely missed the threshold to enter parliament. 24/02/2025
Radio Schuman After Merz’s victory, what to expect from Germany? Germany's election saw turnout amongst the highest since the country’s reunification 35 years ago, alongside a strong performance by the far-right Alternative for Germany, which nearly doubled its support and achieved the best result for a far-right party since World War II. 24/02/2025
Europe News German chancellor candidates react to exit polls in Sunday's election German chancellor candidates have spoken publicly to their supporters after exit polls came out indicating the results of the country’s snap federal election. 24/02/2025
Europe News Who won and who lost in German federal elections: Four key takeaways Germany's election reshapes the political scene, with the far right and far left parties on the rise and coalition chaos and uncertainty for the minnows on the cards. Will CDU's Merz be able to form a coalition until Easter? 23/02/2025
Europe News Exit polls: Merz’s centre-right CDU leads in German federal elections Incumbent Chancellor Olaf Scholz has conceded defeat for his centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) after what he called “a bitter election result” on Sunday. 23/02/2025