German conservative politician Friedrich Merz promised on Monday quickly to reform Europe’s largest economy.
The speech came a day before taking office as a chancellor and leader of a coalition with the Social Democrat (SPD), center-left.
Merz, whose conservative block CDU/CSU won the February elections, and SPD leaders, signed the coalition treaty that defines plans for the next four years.
Both parties aim to reactivate growth in Germany, just when the global trade war triggered by US President Donald Trump’s import tariffs threatens another year of recession.
They also aim to increase defense spending amid tensions in NATO’s transatlantic alliance.
“From tomorrow, you will have a government determined to make Germany advance through renovations and investments,” said Merz.
The government’s voice would be “heard in Europe and the world,” he said, after the implosion last November of the SPD Chancellor Tripartite coalition, Olaf Scholz, who left a political vacuum in the heart of Europe.
SPD co -president Lars Klingbeil commented that the new government should help shape the new world order, or risk being “shaped by it.”
Composition of the German Office
This Monday (5), the SPD revealed its choices to the cabinet, a mixture of new and known faces.
Germany’s Social Democratic Party had already announced last week that 47-year-old Klingbeil would take over the Ministry of Finance.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, 65, is the only minister who will keep his position in the new coalition, after the SPD obtained his worst result in the national election of 23 February.
Pistorius, Defense Minister since January 2023, is popular for direct style and firm posture in relation to national security.
He stated that Germany should be ready to face a war by 2029 due to Russia’s threats – a bold statement in a country marked by military aggression itself in the last century.
The SPD also appointed former Bundestag president Baerbel Bas, 57, as Minister of Labor; former East Commissioner of Germany, Carsten Schneider, 49, to lead a new Ministry of Environment and Climate Protection; and former Secretary of State for Integration, Reem Alabali-Adovan, 35, as Development Minister.
“As a consequence of the bad results in federal elections, we jointly announce a renewal in both the team and the political direction.” Commented Klingbeil, Colíder Saskia Esken and Secretary General Matthias Miersch in a statement.
“With our government team, we, as a party leadership, are now taking the next step,” they added.
This content was originally published in Merz promises to reform Germany after announcing a new cabinet on the CNN Brazil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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