BEIJING: China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Monday that China stands ready to work with the new German federal government to consolidate and grow the China-Germany comprehensive strategic partnership.
Germany’s conservative bloc, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU), won German federal election, according to preliminary results, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Monday morning.
Over the past 53 years of diplomatic ties, China has viewed its relations with Germany from a strategic and long-term perspective, and developed the bilateral relations under the principles of mutual respect, equality, mutual benefit and seeking common ground while shelving differences, the spokesperson said.
Germany and the EU are of global significance. China is glad to see Germany and the EU play an important role in global affairs, supports the integration of Europe and the strategic independence of the EU, and is ready to work with Germany and the EU to continue contributing to world peace and prosperity, Lin noted.
CDU/CSU secured 28.5 percent of the vote, followed by the Alternative for Germany (AfD) with 20.6 percent and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) with 16.5 percent, Xinhua reported, citing German public broadcaster ARD.
The Greens came in fourth with 11.8 percent, ahead of Die Linke with 8.7 percent. The Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW) are projected to receive 4.4 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively, according to the media report.
The election will determine the composition of the next Bundestag, Germany’s lower house of parliament. A party must receive at least 5 percent of the national vote to gain representation in the Bundestag, Xinhua said.
CDU leader Friedrich Merz is poised to become the next chancellor, but he is likely to face difficult coalition talks, German media Deutsche Welle reported.
Merz faces complex and lengthy coalition negotiations after the far-right AfD surged to a historic second place in a fractured vote after the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-way alliance, Reuters said.
On transatlantic relations, Merz promised to “achieve independence” from the US, saying that Germany had to fundamentally remake its security arrangements and end a decades-long reliance on Washington, given that US President Donald Trump was “largely indifferent” to Europe’s fate, the Financial Times reported.
Trump hailed Sunday as a “great day for Germany” after an election in which the center-right opposition won first place followed by the far-right AfD with its strongest result ever, Reuters reported.
On the Ukraine crisis, Merz urged earlier a close cooperation between Europe and the US in seeking a lasting peace in Ukraine, DPA reported in February.
