Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his congratulations to the newly elected Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz. In his statement on X (Twitter), he said:
This is reported by Kyiv24
“I sincerely congratulate Friedrich Merz on his election as Federal Chancellor of Germany”
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Zelensky also expressed gratitude to Germany and its people for their support of Ukraine, emphasizing that Berlin’s assistance has saved thousands of Ukrainian lives.
He added: "We sincerely hope that Germany will become even stronger and that we will see more German leadership in European and transatlantic affairs. This is especially important now, as the future of Europe depends on our unity.”.
Merz’s Election and the Political Context in Germany
Earlier on Tuesday, the Bundestag supported Friedrich Merz’s candidacy for Chancellor for the second time. 325 deputies voted in favor of his candidacy, while at least 316 votes were needed for approval. The initial support was lower – 310 votes during the previous voting.
Merz leads the conservative CDU/CSU bloc, which came in first in the early parliamentary elections held in late February 2025. Following the elections, a coalition agreement was reached between the CDU/CSU and the Social Democrats, securing his candidacy for Chancellor.
The new Chancellor takes a tougher stance on Russia than his predecessor Olaf Scholz. In particular, he has stated that Germany should supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus cruise missiles if the Kremlin does not cease its attacks on civilian infrastructure.
The war between Russia and Ukraine became one of the main topics in the election campaign leading up to the elections in Germany, which took place in February 2025.