Merz Urges CDU-CSU Unity and Rejects Cooperation with AfD

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has urged the country’s conservative CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the CSU, to stand together more closely, while reaffirming that his political bloc will not cooperate with the far-right Alternative for Germany. Speaking at the CSU’s conference in Munich, Merz said the two parties must be more united than ever. He presented the Union as facing pressure from political extremists and said it would not leave Germany in the hands of forces at the fringes.

Merz also emphasised his relationship with CSU leader Markus Söder, describing Söder as a strong voice for Bavaria and the federal level. He said the two parties shared responsibility for the country. The remarks came as the conservative bloc seeks to maintain cohesion amid pressure from the AfD.

The chancellor repeated his opposition to any change in the “firewall” separating the Union from the AfD. “Anyone who feels they have to vote for these people has no place in our Union,” Merz said, according to DW. The AfD has been leading national opinion polls, although a Friday poll cited by DW showed Merz’s conservative bloc narrowing the difference.

That poll nevertheless indicated that Merz’s coalition would still lack a majority if an election were held immediately. The supplied report does not identify the parties’ precise figures, but said the survey was conducted for public broadcaster ZDF and asked voters which party they would support in a federal election that Sunday. Merz also suggested that electricity tax could be reduced next year.

“If it’s possible — and I think it is — then the electricity tax must be lowered next year,” he said at the conference. His coalition partners have already agreed to reduce the tax for all sectors to the European minimum as quickly as possible. So far, the federal government has approved reductions only for industry, agriculture and forestry.

Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil of the Social Democratic Party has said there is limited room for manoeuvre, despite forecasts of higher tax revenues. Merz’s statement therefore indicates a political goal rather than a completed government decision. The conference took place against a wider backdrop of security concerns.

DW reported that Merz described Russia as seeking to destabilise Germany daily and referred to a “massive threat” from Russia and extremist forces. Germany has increased attention to possible sabotage, including after an explosive-laden drone was found near a Ukrainian cargo plane at Leipzig airport. Police in Brandenburg also arrested a Ukrainian man suspected by federal prosecutors of spying for Russia for militarily relevant information.

The supplied reports do not connect that case to Merz’s conference remarks, but they place his call for unity within a broader debate over internal extremism and external threats. Merz’s message combined party discipline, a continued refusal to work with the AfD and a promise to pursue lower electricity taxation. The reports provide no indication that the tax reduction has been formally approved or that the Union’s polling position has translated into a parliamentary majority.