S exploures between the CDU and the SPD should begin on Friday

Union and SPD want to start the explorations for a joint federal government this week. The first conversation is planned for Friday, as the “Bild” had first reported. Dem star the date and the negotiators participating in it were then confirmed.

Both sides should send each nine negotiators. For the SPD, the party leader Lars Klingbeil and Saskia Esken sit at the table, as well as Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Minister of Labor Hubertus Heil. Also in the negotiation team: General Secretary Matthias Miersch, Bundestag President Bärbel Bas, the two Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig and Anke Rehlinger as well as the head of the NRW-SPD, Achim Post.

According to the German Press Agency CDU boss and election winner Friedrich Merz, CSU chairman Markus Söder as well as the general secretaries Carsten Linnemann (CDU) and Martin Huber (CSU) are exploring for the Union. Next to it sitting at the table: Union faction manager Thorsten Frei, CSU state group leader Alexander Dobrindt, Saxon Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer, the deputy CDU chairwoman Karin Prien and the CSU politician Dorothee Bär.

A black-red coalition is the most likely government after the Bundestag election. However, difficult negotiations are expected-there are significant differences in topics such as migration, debt brake and Ukraine policy.

In addition, a lot of trust between the parties was destroyed in the election campaign. The SPD accused Merz’s broken word and taboo due to a joint coordination with the AfD in the Bundestag. The CDU boss recently struggled sharply against “left-wing spinner” and acted the accusation of the SPD to act like a “mini-trump”.

Klingbeil has repeatedly made it clear that there is no automatism of a government participation: “Whether the formation of a government, whether the SPD will enter a government, is not clear,” he said.

Note: This article has been updated and further information was added.