Germany's SPD: No decision on entering coalition talks

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) leader on Friday denied media reports that claimed his party was ready to enter coalition talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Conservatives.

Speaking at a news conference after a key party executive meeting in Berlin, Martin Schulz sharply criticized Christian Democrats for leaking information to the media, after a crisis summit hosted by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Thursday.

"We have many options for forming a government. We should discuss each of these options," he said, and ruled out any hasty decisions under time pressure.

The chairman said the SPD's executive committee would discuss various options on Monday, and make a proposal which would be discussed at SPD’s party conference from Dec. 7 to 9 in Berlin.

Bild daily reported earlier on Friday that the SPD had greenlighted coalition talks after discussions among Schulz, Christian Democratic Union's (CDU) leader Angela Merkel and Christian Social Union (CSU) leader Horst Seehofer on Thursday evening.

President Steinmeier had brought together the leaders for a joint meeting to break the current political deadlock in the EU's largest economy.

Merkel’s CDU/CSU was the largest bloc after federal elections on Sept. 24, but it failed to secure an absolute majority in the parliament.

Her efforts to create a three-way government with the liberal FDP and Greens failed after weeks of negotiations following the election.

Merkel stressed last week that Germany needed a stable government and invited Social Democrats for preliminary talks to form a conservative-left coalition government.

Schulz previously opposed a "grand coalition" with the CDU/CSU, arguing that the election result meant voters had rejected the option of another grand coalition between the SPD and the CDU/CSU.

However, several leading Social Democrat politicians have supported a coalition or are backing a minority CDU/CSU government.

Both the SPD and CDU/CSU weakened in September's poll, and many in the SPD have blamed their poor showing on the party's membership in the previous coalition.

Although Merkel's bloc is still the biggest group in the parliament, it needs the support of either the SPD, which is the second largest group in Bundestag, or two smaller parties to form a government.