Germany: Political Parties Inch Toward a Coalition Government

Germany is one step closer to putting a government in place, after parliamentary elections in September 2017 left the Bundestag fragmented and without a clear majority. After a week of exploratory talks, the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union (CSU), and the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) reached an agreement on the morning of Jan. 12 to prepare formal coalition negotiations. Leaders of all three parties confirmed their alignment at a press conference later in the day, with CSU leader Horst Seehofer adding that he expected a new government to be in place before Easter....