German Chancellor candidate Merz to visit Ukraine in coming days
Photo: German chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz (facebook.com/MerzCDU)
Candidate for German Chancellor from the largest opposition bloc, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), Friedrich Merz, plans to visit Ukraine "in the coming days", n-tv reports.
According to Merz, his trip is scheduled for the near future, after which he will "inform European partners" about its outcomes.
Merz previously visited Ukraine in May 2022, shortly after the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion. During that visit, he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Germany is on the verge of early parliamentary elections following the collapse of the "traffic light coalition" in November, which included Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD), the Greens, and the Free Democrats (FDP).
Merz currently has the best chance of becoming the next German Chancellor, although the current Chancellor, Scholz, is also a candidate for this position.
Notably, Scholz visited Kyiv on December 2, marking his second trip to Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.
Elections in Germany
In early November, Germany's ruling coalition collapsed following Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s dismissal of Finance Minister Christian Lindner, a member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD).
On November 8, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier handed dismissal documents to the ministers.
In response, Scholz announced his willingness to submit the issue of a vote of confidence in his government before the Bundestag. Meanwhile, opposition parties in Germany are considering forming a new coalition that includes Scholz's party but excludes him personally.
Later, it was announced that the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) officially nominated Scholz as their lead candidate for chancellor in the upcoming federal elections.
