Germany news: CDU re-elects Chancellor Merz as party leader

During the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party conference on Friday, Merz largely attacked his rivals on the right — according to him, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) is characterized by nepotism, chaos and abuse of public office.

"They act as if they were an alternative to the political center. In reality, they are serving their own interests," he said, referring to the AfD.

At the same time, he warned against authoritarian tendencies in Germany saying that people could "long for security and order" and turn to authoritarianism in times of upheaval.

"There is a fascination with this. But our history has shown us that this leads to misfortune," Merz said.

Merz presented the coalition with the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) as currently being without an alternative as both parties are the only ones in the political center. However, Germany and its social policy are facing a "paradigm shift."

"We want this German welfare state," he stressed, while adding he believed the country urgently needed reforms.

He said that the statutory pension as it exists today can only be "one building block" in the future, arguing that Germany also needs strong industrial and technological progress. After several years of recession, which have "left deep scars" in Germany, one thing is clear: "Germany must remain an industrialized country," Merz said.

Former Chancellor Angela Merkel was welcomed as a special guest at the Stuttgart conference. She had been absent from her own party's conferences for years. She attended now that her long-time political adversary, Friedrich Merz, was making his first appearance as chancellor, which many interpreted as a conciliatory gesture by the "grand dame" of German politics.

Merkel, who is seen as representing the party's centrist wing, publicly chided Merz early in 2025 after the CDU relied on votes from the far-right AfD to pass a non-binding resolution on border policy in parliament. Merz — who was seen as a rival to Merkel before he took a long hiatus from politics and only came back after she resigned as party leader — belongs to the CDU's conservative wing.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been re-elected as party leader with 91.2% of the vote at the conservative Christian Democratic Union's party conference in Stuttgart. Such a strong result was not a foregone conclusion. Merz had previously given a speech focusing on foreign policy, in which he directly linked his domestic reform agenda to the global situation.

"We are not at war, but we are no longer at peace either," Merz said in his opening remarks, drawing on a broad perspective both home and abroad.

Merz spoke clearly about the widening gap between Germany and the United States — despite the political tension, the Americans are "our friends," he said in Stuttgart, "but the United States itself is losing interest in its role as a guarantor power, as a reliable peacemaker."

He explained to some 1,000 delegates present at the conference what the end of the "rules-based order" and the "new era of strength — militar and economic" means for Germany. In a world that is becoming harsher and more dangerous, where rules no longer count, "the risk of conflict is growing and increasing," the chancellor warned.

Merz received the loudest round of applause when he spoke about Ukraine: "We stand by the Ukrainian people, no ifs, ands, or buts." He also said that one would "never accept a criminal Russian system waging systematic war," including against women and children.

"What is particularly unbearable is the Nazi propaganda against the Ukrainian people, who suffered like no other" under German occupation during World War II.

Russian President Vladimir Putin falsely claimed that the Ukrainian government was made up by neo-Nazis as grounds for Moscow's invasion.

Friedrich Merz's first appearance as the German Chancellor at a party conference was well received. "He is not known for explaining himself and his actions, but here he did," said a CDU delegate from the workers' wing. Another CDU member from eastern Germany said, "I thought it was good that he admitted that he had promised too much at the beginning."

Germany's governing conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) re-elected Chancellor Friedrich Merz as its leader on Friday.

Merz received 878 out of 963 votes from delegates at the party's congress in Stuttgart in southwestern Baden-Württemberg state.

The chancellor is aiming to shore up his support ahead of multiple state elections.

The far-right Alternative for Germany is polling ahead of Merz's CDU in the eastern states of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Thuringia, which are to hold elections in September.

While speaking at the Friday party congress, Merz said that the CDU must "prevent right-wing radicalism from moving back into the state chancelleries in Germany."

Alican Uludag, a correspondent for DW's Turkish service who had been reporting on corruption for several years, has been arrested in Turkey. Authorities have searched Uludag's apartment and seized computer equipment. 

Chancellor Merz has been calling on Germans to work more. This is practically impossible for many working parents as childcare centers battle with staff shortages and reduced operating hours.

Read more about the story here.

China has overtaken the US as Germany's most important trading partner, according to figures released by Germany's Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).

China was Germany's most important trading partner from 2016 all the way through to 2023. In 2024, the US briefly held the title. 

Read more about the story here.

Germany has been cleared by the European Commission to take sole control of Rosneft Deutschland — the German subsidiary of Russia's state-controlled oil company — citing no competition concerns.

The Brussels authority approved the takeover by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, allowing Berlin to formalize control it had already exercised as trustee.

After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Germany placed Rosneft Deutschland under trusteeship and halted imports of Russian pipeline oil.

The company's refinery in the eastern German city of Schwedt in Brandenburg state has been supplied with oil from various non-Russian sources since early 2023.

The trusteeship has so far been extended in six-month intervals, with the current order running until March 10.

The Economy Ministry said the arrangement was meant to safeguard energy security after crude oil suppliers signaled they might end business ties if control reverted to Rosneft.

Rosneft Deutschland accounts for about 12% of Germany’s oil refining capacity, making it one of the country's largest refining companies.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has urged his party not to abandon the transatlantic partnership despite growing tensions with the US under President Donald Trump.

Speaking at the CDU party congress in Stuttgart, Merz said that in a "beginning era of great powers" and rising unpredictability there is a need to redefine relations with "our American friends," adding: "We will not give up this friendship lightly. And we will always fight to ensure it endures."

Merz pointed to his long personal and professional ties to the United States, saying the partnership has shaped much of his political, professional, and private life.

"I know the country, I like the country, I like the people — most of them, at least, in America," he said, adding he does not want to give up believing that people there still share similar experiences, values, and culture.

At the same time, Merz said it is true that the US is "increasingly losing interest in the role of guarantor of the international order," urging Germany to face that reality "without illusions and without nostalgia."

He said Germany must now work on its future "under these new conditions of the laws of power politics."

Germany must assert itself and adopt greater responsibility as a new world order rapidly takes shape, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has told delegates at the start of the Christian Democrat (CDU) party conference in Stuttgart.

Merz said the rules-based international order as it was known no longer exists and called for a new grand strategy for Germany within a united Europe.

He said Germany is showing courage — the courage to shape the future and to assert itself.

Addressing party members, Merz thanked voters who returned the CDU to government in last year's federal election and pledged not to disappoint them.

"We will not disappoint our voters," said Merz. "And we will also work for all those who did not vote for us last year."

The CDU has a responsibility for all of Germany, emphasized Merz, who is expected to be reelected as CDU chair later in the day. The party's task, he said, was "to give everyone confidence."

Angela Merkel has received prolonged applause from around 1,000 delegates at her first Christian Democrat (CDU) party congress since leaving office in 2021.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz welcomed her at the start of his opening speech in Stuttgart as the first of "many loyal companions" from the party, saying, "First and foremost, I welcome the former chair of the CDU of Germany, our longtime federal chancellor, Angela Merkel. Dear Angela, welcome."

Merkel took a seat in the front row between the other two living former CDU leaders, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and Armin Laschet. She had unexpectedly announced her attendance just days earlier.

The 71-year-old last attended a CDU federal party congress in person in 2019 in Leipzig. The final congress during her time as chancellor was held digitally in January 2021 due to the pandemic, before she was succeeded in December that year by Olaf Scholz of the SPD.

Merkel declined invitations to party congresses in 2022, 2024, and 2025. In 2024, her office said her absence was in line with her publicly stated view after leaving office not to take part in day-to-day political events, adding when asked whether that position had changed, "No, the exception proves the rule."

A murder trial has begun under tight security at Frankfurt Regional Court over a fatal shooting at the city's main train station 18 months ago.

Eight men aged between 22 and 56 are on trial, with prosecutors charging seven of them with murder and one with conspiracy to commit a crime. The defendants hold either Turkish or German citizenship.

Prosecutors allege the oldest defendant shot a 27-year-old man in the back of the head at close range near the platforms in August 2024. When the victim fell to the ground, the defendant is said to have shot him twice more in the head before discarding the pistol and fleeing.

Federal Police arrested the 56-year-old suspect inside the station after a brief attempt to flee, and the other defendants were detained in the following months.

Prosecutors say the killing stemmed from a long-running family feud in Turkey that had already claimed several lives. Three months before the station shooting, the victim's uncle allegedly killed a relative of the defendants’ family.

German news organization Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) reports that the Defense Ministry sees no reason to block German defense startup, Stark Defence, from supplying kamikaze drones, despite US President Donald Trump ally Peter Thiel's involvement.

The ministry told lawmakers in a letter that, according to company information, "Peter Thiel, through his investment firm Thiel Capital, is one of many minority shareholders," holding "below 10%." He is "not a member of the supervisory board," and there are "no control or other special rights" that would give him insight into or influence over operations.

The Bundestag’s budget committee will review contracts for Stark Defence and Munich-based Helsing next week.

The deals have an initial combined value of €536 million ($630 million), with options that could raise the total into the billions.

Green Party security spokeswoman Sara Nanni said Thursday that Thiel's influence poses risks that must be examined.

Left-wing MP Dietmar Bartsch has called for the deal to be halted, citing Thiel’s opposition to liberal democracies.

Earlier this week, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said the government must first clarify Thiel’s actual level of influence before approving any contract.

Around 1.9 million people with university-level qualifications were at risk of poverty in 2025, an increase of 350,000 compared with 2022. The figures from Germany's official statistics office says were released in response to a request from the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW).

The rise comes as the number of graduates grew to 21 million nationwide. Yet data from the Federal Employment Agency show unemployment among academics climbed to 3.3%, up from 2.2% three years earlier.

"Decline and poverty now affect all levels of education," Sahra Wagenknecht, founder of the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance said, calling on policymakers to revive the economy and enable social mobility through hard work.

Despite the trend, the poverty risk remains much higher for people with lower or medium levels of education. Of 14.3 million people with low qualifications, about 4.1 million were considered at risk in 2025.

Under Germany's definition, anyone earning less than 60% of the median income is classed as at risk of poverty, which amounted to €1,446 per month for a single adult last year.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz faces a key leadership test today as he seeks re‑election as chairman of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) at the party's national conference in Stuttgart.

Merz is aiming for a strong mandate from delegates, in his first leadership vote since becoming chancellor in May 2025. His previous results ranged from 94.6% in 2022 to just under 90% in 2024.

Delegates will also vote on a proposal calling for a "new upswing in the housing market."

Former chancellor Angela Merkel is attending as guest of honor, her first appearance at a CDU federal conference since leaving office.

The two‑day congress launches a busy election year for the CDU, with five state elections, starting in Baden‑Württemberg in early March.

Guten tag from Bonn. About 350 kilometers from here, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is facing a major test.

He heads into his party's congress seeking the backing from his own CDU party members to become the chairperson again.

The attention will be on how much support he gets. 

In 2024, Merz secured just under 90% in his first reelection as party leader, down from the 94.6 % he received in a pandemic-era online vote in early 2022.

We will focus much of our coverage on that. Plus, we're going to have insights from DW's correspondents at the party gathering in Stuttgart.