BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives and the Social Democrats sealed a deal on a new coalition Wednesday, potentially ending four months of political deadlock in Europe’s top economy.

After a third extra day of negotiations that dragged on until dawn, a relieved Merkel told reporters the agreement would create “the good and stable government that our country needs and that many in the world expect from us”.

After making major concessions to get the accord, she acknowledged it had been a “long road that led us here” but added that “in the end, I think it was worth it”. The breakthrough will come as a relief to Germany’s EU partners as the bloc faces tough negotiations on migration and Brexit. Merkel, Europe’s most experienced leader, has seen her standing at home and abroad weakened by the longest stretch of coalition-building in the country’s postwar history.

But before she can be sworn in, a final hurdle looms: the hard-fought “grand coalition” pact between her CDU/CSU bloc and the Social Democratic Party must still be approved by the SPD’s sceptical rank-and-file. Germany has been stuck in political limbo since September’s inconclusive general election saw mainstream parties bleed support to the far-right AfD, which tapped into anger over Merkel’s liberal refugee policy.

After a failed attempt to forge an untried alliance with two smaller parties, Merkel opted to woo back the reluctant SPD — her junior partner for two of her three terms since 2005.—AFP