Merz rules out cooperation with far-right if he wins German elections
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At the end of January, the Bundestag supported the decision to tighten migration policy due to the votes of the far-right Alternative for Germany party. Despite the support of the initiative by the CDU and CSU, chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz said that there would be no cooperation with the AfD, NTV reports.
Merz was harshly criticized for gaining the required number of votes, which were added by representatives of the AfD. However, at the CSU party conference, he once again tried to clarify, ruling out any form of cooperation with Alternative for Germany in the event of his victory.
The chancellor candidate of the Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union stated that the Union (of these two parties) follows the tradition of the most important European decisions of recent decades, and the AfD calls all of this into question.
For this reason, the Union will not have "any form of cooperation or even participation in government" with the Alternative for Germany.
"We would be betraying our country, I would be betraying the soul of the CDU if I sacrificed even my little finger to pursue such a policy," the chancellor candidate said.
He also added that anyone who really wants change in Germany should not vote for the AfD.
The newspaper added that despite the winning vote on migration policy in the Bundestag, a more far-reaching legislative proposal was not adopted.
In late December, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier dissolved the parliament in response to a request from the current German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. In connection with the dissolution, he set the date for early elections to the Bundestag, which will take place this month, on February 23.