The leader of Germany's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Friedrich Merz announced today a "project of strength" in the name of Germany's progress in connection with the coalition agreement between the country's center-right and center-left parties to form the new government, which he will head as chancellor, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
The agreement was agreed after weeks of difficult negotiations after Merz's CDU and the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) won the parliamentary elections in February. They will govern for the next four years in coalition with the German Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Sixty-nine-year-old Merz – a former rival of Angela Merkel – will replace Olaf Scholz of the SPD as chancellor.
At a press conference today, he said that the coalition agreement reached between the conservatives and the Social Democrats is a sign that Europe can count on Germany.
It "is a very strong and clear signal to the citizens of our country. And it is a clear signal to our partners in the European Union," Merz said during a press conference with his coalition partners. "Germany is getting a government that is capable of action and is strong", the future chancellor stressed.
The coalition agreement includes measures aimed at curbing illegal migration, including returning asylum seekers at the border, organizing deportations of Syrian citizens and suspending family reunification, Reuters notes.
The partners agreed to suspend family reunification with so-called subsidiary protection status for two years and to stop all state refugee admission programs, as well as not to create new programs in the future, the document states.
Asylum seekers will be returned at the border in coordination with neighboring countries.
The future government wants to deport citizens of Syria and Afghanistan back to their countries, starting with criminals and potentially dangerous people, and will abolish the naturalization of migrants after three years in Germany. The new cabinet, however, will retain the civil reforms adopted by the previous government.
The future government also promised "full support" for Ukraine in military and diplomatic terms in the context of Russian aggression.
"We will provide full support to Ukraine so that it can effectively defend itself against the Russian aggressor and strengthen its position in the negotiations," is written in the coalition agreement.