Chancellor Merkel says a compromise on migration reached with the Bavarian CSU is a good basis for exploratory talks on forming a ruling coalition with the Greens and the FDP. Talks are to begin on October 18.
She said the CDU and CSU had "reached a common outcome that I feel is a very good basis for entering into exploratory talks with the FDP and [...] the Greens," Merkel said at a joint press conference with CSU leader Horst Seehofer in Berlin.
The issue of a cap on migration has been a bone of contention for years between the two parties, with the CSU urging that just 200,000 refugees allowed into Germany each year — a limit that critics say breaches German constitutional law on refugees' rights.
After long discussions on Sunday, leaders of both parties reached a compromise, agreeing to attempt to limit the influx of refugees without imposing an official cap.
Thorny talks ahead?
Even so, the issue is likely to cause difficulties with the Greens, who oppose any form of limitation on refugee numbers. Greens co-leader Cem Özdemir has already criticized the compromise, saying that it might be the position taken by the CDU/CSU, but was "not the position of a future government."
Despite this and other remaining differences between the CDU/CSU, FDP and Greens, Merkel said on Saturday that a "Jamaica" coalition consisting of the four parties — so-called because the combination of the parties' signature colors results in the colors of the Jamaican flag — was the only realistic option to form a reliable government. This came after the Social Democrats (SPD), the current junior coalition partner, said that they wanted to go into opposition rather than again form part of a "grand coalition."
So far, the schedule for exploratory talks envisages separate talks between the CDU/CSU and the FDP and the CDU/CSU and the Greens on October 18, followed by talks between FDP and Greens the following day. All parties are scheduled to convene on October 20.
The four parties have all said they will not enter into any coalition with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), which will send 94 deputies to the Bundestag after receiving some 13 percent of the vote in September elections.
Germany's colorful coalition shorthand
Foreign flags and even traffic lights are used to describe the various coalitions that emerge in German elections. Coalitions are common under Germany's proportional representation system.
Image: Getty Images
'Traffic light' coalition — Red, Yellow, Green
Since 2021 Germany has been governed by a center-left coalition of Social Democrats (SPD), ecologist Greens, and free-market-oriented neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP), whose color is yellow. They started out as a self-declared "Fortschrittskoalition" (progress coalition) but got mired in infighting along the way.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/J.Büttner
Black-red coalition
The Conservative's black combined with transformative red is the color code when the Christian Democrats govern in a "grand coalition" with the Social Democrats. This combination of Germany's two big tent parties, was in power for eight years until 2021, led by then-Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Image: picture-alliance/R. Goldmann
'Pizza Connection' — precursor to Black and Green
When Bonn was still Germany's capital, conservative and Greens lawmakers started meeting informally in an Italian restaurant, in what became known as the 'Pizza Connection.' At the regional level, Baden-Württemburg's Greens-CDU coalition has governed since 2016 and Germany's most populous state of North-Rhine Westphalia has had a Black-Green government since 2022.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
'Jamaica' option — black, yellow and green
A three-way deal between the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU), the Greens and the neoliberal Free Democrats FDP), whose color is yellow did not come about at national level in 2017 after the FDP called off talks. It has been tested at a state level, where Schleswig-Holstein had a "Jamaica" government until they went Black-Green in 2022.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/dpaweb
Black, Red, Green — like Kenya's flag
The eastern German state of Saxony has been governed by a coalition of CDU, SPD and Greens, headed by the state's popular Premier Michael Kretschmer. He is hoping to be able to stay in power despite the rise of the right-wing extremist Alternative for Germany (AfD) which is campaigning on an anti-immigrant and anti-NATO agenda.
Image: Fotolia/aaastocks
The Germany coalition — Black, Red and Yellow
The eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt has been governed by a coalition led by the CDU's popular Premier Rainer Haseloff. He has teamed up with the SPD and the FDP. The alliance of unlikely bedfellows was the only viable option to ward off the threat by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Image: Hoffmann/Caro/picture alliance
Black and Orange
Since 2018 Bavaria's Christian Social Union (CSU) has been governing with the Free Voters (FV), whose color is Orange. The FV is a grass-roots populist and far-right-leaning party and is led by its controversial chairman Hubert Aiwanger. Strong in rural areas of southern and eastern Germany, the Freie Wähler is seeking a larger role at the national level and currently has three MEPs.
Image: Privat
Violet and Black?
In graphics showing opinion polls, the new Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) is shown in violet. That may be fitting, as it combines socialist, far-left (red) with populist right wing (blue) ideas in its platform. Although the party was only founded in 2024, it is doing so well in the eastern German states that it may well be asked to join coalition governments. Possibly led by the CDU (Black).
