Germany's Christian Democrats and Social Democrats are ready to begin formal coalition talks after preliminary talks concluded positively.
Christian Democratic Union (CDU) leader Friedrich Merz, who won Germany's federal elections last month, told reporters on Saturday that preliminary talks on a future coalition with the SPD had resulted in an agreement, Tagesschau reports.
Following preliminary talks, the conservatives and the SPD agreed on a final document on the basis of which negotiations can now begin.
According to Taggeschau, Merz said in Berlin that agreement had been reached on a number of issues, including migration and finance – topics that had divided the groups until now.
Formal talks on forming a ruling coalition could begin as early as next week and are expected to last until Easter.
[OM]
Source: Source
