Briefly

GERMANY

Parties agree for coalition discussions

Germany's conservative Union bloc of CDU and CSU and the Social Democratic Party on Saturday announced their intention to enter formal coalition negotiations, following the conclusion of exploratory talks. The talks, which lasted for over a week after the federal election on Feb 23, produced a paper outlining the basis for the two parties to form a coalition government. CDU leader and the likely next Chancellor Friedrich Merz said at a news conference that agreements had been reached in a number of key policy areas.