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Merkel’s political demise triggered coalition talks failure, says expert

According to an expert from the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, Germany’s political crisis has deep roots

MOSCOW, November 20. /TASS/. The breakdown of talks on forming a ruling coalition in Germany came as a result of the political decline of Chancellor Angela Merkel, an expert from the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies said on Monday.

According to Lyudmila Vorobyova, Germany’s political crisis has deep roots. "They are connected with Merkel’s 12-year-long reign, with the social-democrats’ policy of compromise, resulting in the degradation of people’s parties, in particular the CDU/CSU and the SPD (the Social Democratic Party of Germany), as well as disintegration of the political landscape," the political analyst said.

Merkel has ceased being an integrating force in Germany, she’s lost her authority," Vorobyova added.

"The once popular parties have stopped promoting interests of the people, a striking example of which was the throwing open the borders to the flood of refugees," she noted. "This policy was backed by Christian Democrats and Social-Democrats, while the Alternative for Germany party made it into parliament on the wake of discontent increasing the number of parties in Bundestag," she explained.

The Russian expert also stressed that the current situation offers unique prospects for the German president, a post that usually holds a less significant stature and that mainly consists of representative capacities," she explained.

"But now it hangs precisely on him whether or not to dissolve the parliament, announce a new election or appoint a government of minority. Nobody can pressure him, he is guided only by his conscience, an analysis of the situation in the country and his understanding of its interests," the expert said.

Exploratory talks on forming the government with the participation of the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union CDU/CSU, the Green Party and the Free Democratic Party ended in vain in Berlin overnight to Monday. The parties failed to agree on the main issues on the agenda. The alliance, dubbed Jamaica coalition because of the parties’ colors, was in essence the only real chance to form a majority coalition after the Bundestag elections and the refusal of Social-Democrats to continue any cooperation with the Merkel-led CDU/CSU.