The coalition parties from the Union and the SPD have reportedly reached an agreement with representatives of the Alliance 90/The Greens on the allocation of additional billions of euros in debt. Only a few details need to be ironed out.
According to a report by Bild, the leaders of the factions from the CDU/CSU, SPD and Greens had been in talks until the early morning hours. In exchange for their approval of the debt plans proposed by the Union and SPD, the Greens had negotiated a sum of at least 50 billion euros, which would flow into the climate protection fund, the KTF.
Despite the controversies in the Bundestag yesterday, the CDU chairman, Friedrich Merz, had expressed optimism about reaching an agreement with the Greens.
The mentioned sum will be part of the 500-billion-euro infrastructure package, which is intended to cover the costs of road construction, bridge renovation and the construction of new clinics, among other things.
It is currently unclear whether the 50 billion euros will be further increased. Earlier in the day, it had been reported that as much as 100 billion euros could flow into the KTF fund, which might be a concession to politicians from the Greens in the federal states who had been expecting a counteroffer.
During the debate in the Bundestag on Thursday, the positions of the Union and the Greens had seemed to be still far apart. The double leadership of the Greens’ faction, Katharina Dröge and Britta Haßelmann, had still been very distant from Merz’s offer. It is possible that a breakthrough occurred overnight.
All three parties have called for special meetings of their Bundestag factions for 1 pm. According to sources from the Union’s faction, this could also indicate an agreement. Friedrich Merz is expected to make a statement.