German Chancellor Friedrich Merz rules out a minority government and is betting on a coalition of conservatives and Social Democrats

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Tuesday that there is no viable majority in Berlin’s current parliament outside the coalition between conservatives and Social Democrats. He thus ruled out forming a minority government and announced that he intends to use the full four-year term to resolve Germany’s problems.

Merz hopes to reach an agreement with the Social Democratic Party (SPD) on future reforms after the regional elections scheduled for September 20. The chancellor did not provide details about the planned measures, but promised that the government would intervene to offset rising fuel prices.

At an economic event, the German leader also advocated strengthening the European Union’s trade partnerships with Mercosur and Australia. According to Merz, these ties could help Europe counterbalance the economic dominance of the United States and China.

CSU leader Markus Söder expressed his support for the chancellor and said he expected CDU leadership to back him as well. In electoral terms, conservatives are polling at approximately 7% in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, while the CDU-CSU bloc stands at 18%-20% nationwide, far behind the far-right AfD.