Chancellors of Germany

Solving problems between Germany and Turkey is in the interest of both sides, as officials continue to discuss concrete issues, a close aide of Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Dec. 14.

The leader of Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) said on Dec. 4 he would launch talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives on forming a government next week if members of his center-left party gave him the green light at a congress this weekend.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has sent a text message to Germany's Social Democratic leader Martin Schulz urging him to join a grand coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives.

In an interview with local media, the SPD chief said that Greece's leftist prime minister had urged him not to let "this deciding phase in Europe go to pass."

Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed has the prospect of talks on a “grand coalition” with her Social Democrat (SPD) rivals and defended the record of the previous such government, saying it had worked well.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Nov. 20 that she was "very skeptical" about leading a minority government if no coalition could be formed to run Europe's biggest economy and thinks a new election would be a better solution.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was ready to lead her party to a possible new election for the Bundestag instead of risking forming an unstable minority government.

"I am very skeptical about a minority government," she told TVD, adding that "the new elections will be the better way."

The European currency plunged to a two-month low against the yen on news that in Germany the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) have pulled out of four-week negotiations with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc and the ecologist Greens.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Nov. 20 her efforts to form a three-way coalition government had failed, thrusting Germany into a political crisis and pushing Europe's largest economy closer to a possible new election.

Chancellor Angela Merkel pressed ahead with efforts to form a new German government on Nov. 17 after a night of negotiations failed to resolve differences between the four parties involved. Participants suggested that they may need several more days.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's efforts to forge a three-way ruling coalition could stretch into the weekend after the parties missed Merkel's Thursday deadline and failed to reach agreement on key issues such as migration and finances, reported Reuters.