Germany’s Christian Democrats and Greens parties are plotting a new governing coalition to replace the current left-wing “traffic light” government, a major publication in the country reported.
Bild — owned by media firm Axel Springer — claimed senior figures from both parties have held clandestine meetings, reportedly coinciding with a sudden thawing of relations between the two groups.
This is despite the fact that the Greens are in government, while the Christian Democrats head the opposition.
“[Christian Democrat] leader Friedrich Merz has been noticeably friendly to leading Greens for several months, meeting with them for confidential talks,” the publication reported.
It added that Vice-Chancellor and senior Green politician Robert Habeck had hinted he expected Germany’s next government to greatly expand investment into climate causes.
That is despite the current coalition administration blocking such investments due to the influence of the Liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP).
With the Christian Democrats currently leading in the polls, FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai said he now believed that the failing Greens were plotting a defection.
“Obviously, Robert Habeck is assuming that he will also be part of the next federal government, which will probably be led by Friedrich Merz,” he told Bild, adding that there were “obviously already agreements” in place between the two aimed at facilitating such a coalition.
“Anyone who is already acting as if the next federal election has been decided and is making secret agreements is showing their disregard for the voters.”
The Christian Democrats appeared to be split on the rumours.
The Christian Democratic Union — which operates in most German states — has neither confirmed nor denied the rumours as of the time of writing.
The Christian Social Union of Bavaria (CSU) has expressed outrage at the suggestion it could enter government with the left-wing Greens party.
“There will be no debt agreements with the Greens,” stated CSU Bundestag leader Alexander Dobrindt. “Germany needs a change in policy. And that will work if the Greens are thrown out of government.”
The rumours came amid poor polling figures for all three of Germany’s ruling parties — the Social Democrats, the Greens and the FDP.
The Christian Democrats find themselves out in front in the polls on more than 30 per cent of the national vote, with the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) holding second place at 17.5 per cent.
Slowly climbing in the rankings is the left-wing populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW). Founded earlier this year, the party currently outpolls the FDP, sitting at around 8.5 per cent nationally.
The next German federal election is expected to take place sometime in 2025, although the country is also facing critical local elections in various regions this year.
