Germany: SPD, Greens, FDP make progress in exploratory talks
October 12, 2021
The parties that made the most gains in the German election could reach common ground by the end of this week. Differences in tax policy and climate change are said to be the main sticking points in the talks.
The so-called "traffic light coalition" is based on the colors of the parties SPD, FDP and GreensImage: Klaus-Dieter Esser/agrarmotive/picture alliance
"We will assess the results of the past few days' discussions and write down what we can do together," FDP General Secretary Volker Wissing said, adding that the parties are now discussing the areas where they are the furthest apart.
The three parties have kept quiet about their exploratory talks, which lasted 14 hours on Monday, saying they needed to sort out their differences in private.
"After (the) past days of talks, I am sure we can come up with an agreement together if we work on it," SPD General Secretary Lars Klingbeil said, adding that he is optimistic about the next two days of negotiations.
Michael Kellner, the Greens' national director, said the talks had been in-depth. Kellner added that the amount of common ground had grown, while the number of differences have shrunk. "But there also remain things to solve, to clarify," he added.
In a recent poll, 51% of Germans said they favored the traffic light coalition, far more than the two possibilities that included Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, even though they came in second in the election.
German election 2021: Governing coalition options
A German government needs a 50% majority in parliament, but no one party can get so much voter support. So they agree on coalitions — and the next government will be no exception. Here is an overview of the options.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Hörhager
Deciphering the color code
The center-right Christian Democrat CDU and its Bavarian sister party CSU are symbolized by the color black. The center-left Social Democrat SPD is red, as is the socialist Left Party. The neoliberal Free Democrats' (FDP) color is yellow. And the Greens are self-explanatory. German media often refer to color combinations and national flags, using them as shorthand for political coalitions.
Image: Fotolia/photocrew
Black, red, green — the Kenya coalition
A coalition of center-right Christian Democrats (black) and center-left Social Democrats (red) plus the Green Party would secure a comfortable majority. Such a coalition has been in power in the state of Brandenburg. On a federal level this would be a first.
Image: Fotolia/aaastocks
Black, yellow and green — the Jamaica coalition
The center-right Christian Democrats have often teamed up with the much smaller pro-free market Free Democrats (FDP) at the state and the national level over the years. Taking in the Greens to form a three-way coalition would be an option attractive to many in the CDU. But the Greens and the FDP do not make easy bedfellows, and a similar attempt failed after the last election in 2017.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/dpaweb
Black, red, yellow — the Germany coalition
The center-right CDU and the center-left SPD plus the business-focused FDP. This combination would easily clear the 50% threshold in parliament, and would be the preferred option for business leaders and high-income earners. But if the SPD takes the lead we'd see red, black, yellow — a less conservative option.
Image: imago images/Waldmüller
Red, red, green
The Social Democrats teaming up with the Greens and the Left Party is a specter the conservatives like to raise whenever they perform badly in the polls. But the SPD and Left Party have a difficult history. And the Left's extreme foreign policy positions would likley hamper negotiations.
Image: Imago/C. Ohde
Red, yellow, green — a 'traffic light' coalition
The free-market-oriented liberal FDP has in the past generally ruled out federal coalitions sandwiched between the Social Democrats and the Greens. But this year, the FDP has not ruled out any options. Germany's traditional kingmaker party may above all be keen to return to power — no matter in which color combination.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/J.Büttner
Black and red, red and black — the 'grand coalition'
A "grand coalition" of CDU and SPD, the "big tent parties," has been in power for the past eight years with the conservatives taking the lead. If the election results allow it, this combination may continue in government ... with the stronger party naming the chancellor.
Image: imago images/Shotshop
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Fundamental differences
Though the Greens and the SPD are seen as ideologically close, the FDP is further away from both of them, especially on economic and fiscal policy.
The sticking points in the exploratory talks are said to be differences in tax and financial policy, as well as how to go about tackling climate change.
Though the SPD and the Greens favor moderate tax increases for the wealthy, the FDP strongly rejects those. When it comes to climate policy, the FDP want to rely more on market forces than the SPD and Greens.
If an agreement is reached on Friday, the Greens have said they would need to convene a small party congress to approve their part in it, but they have said they would hold that meeting on Sunday to make a decision quickly.
jcg/wd (Reuters, AFP, dpa)
Can Germany's traffic light parties form a coalition?
