Overview

• Invoking the coalition contract, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said taxes will not be raised, countering SPD leader Lars Klingbeil’s openness to higher rates for top earners.
• Merz stated that no one is currently discussing deploying ground troops to Ukraine and emphasized talks about security guarantees tied to a possible ceasefire.
• CSU chief Markus Söder backed the stance, rejecting tax increases and urging adherence to the agreement while arguing for tax cuts.
• Merz downplayed talk of a coalition rift, even as disagreements over financing social reforms and closing the budget gap continue within the government.
• The Bundestag now moves toward a contentious budget and reform agenda, including a proposed new military service law, and Merz flagged a planned re‑vote on the judge Frauke Brosius‑Gersdorf in the autumn.