Merkel sees ‘tough day’ in crunch German coalition talks

Speaking at the start of the final day of exploratory talks that could lead to formal negotiations, Merkel said it would be a tough day but she recognised that Germans expected results.

By: Reuters | Berlin | Published: January 11, 2018 4:17 pm

Merkel sees 'tough day' in crunch German coalition talks

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for exploratory talks about an new German government between her Christian Unions block and the Social Democratic Party at the SPD headquarters in Berlin, Thursday. (AP Photo)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said her conservatives still had high hurdles to clear in Thursday’s talks on forming a coalition with Social Democrats (SPD) pressing for accelerated European integration.

Merkel, weakened by an election setback in September, turned to the left-leaning SPD to seek a re-run of their so-called “grand coalition” after the collapse in November of talks on a three-way coalition untested at national level. The chancellor, who has won widespread respect abroad in more than 12 years in power, needs the coalition talks to succeed to avoid her personal authority being further undermined and Germany’s international standing diminished.