Germany needs a new government fast. The center-right and center-left are set to hammer out an agreement by Easter, but there are several sticking points.

By Satyaki Chakraborty The polarization in German politics widened after national elections on Sunday, February 23 in which the conservative CDU/CSU with 28.5 per cent votes topped among the political parties followed by the far right AFD at 20.

Despite declarations by Friedrich Merz, the likely future chancellor, the future government's road to taking office looks to be long and strewn with pitfalls.

"Whatever it takes" appears to be the motto of the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats, who are expected to form Germany's new government. They are set to reform borrowing limits to allow for more military spending.

A senior member of Germany's conservative bloc has called on the Social Democrats to put party interests behind those of the country, as both parties are widely expected to begin talks on forming the next government.

After its historic election defeat, Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) plans to elect its new leadership at a party conference in June, six months earlier than planned. In addition to the party leadership and the election result,