Update: German Center-Right and Center-Left Parties Agree to Form a Grand Coalition

The leading German parties have agreed to form a grand center-right/center-left coalition between the ruling conservative bloc, made up of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right Christian Democrats and the Bavarian conservatives, and the main democratic socialist opposition party.

            The parties reached an agreement today on maintaining the current tax rates, restoring a regulation on health insurance that divides premiums equally between employers and employees, and on the quota on the acceptance of migrants.  The new government is expected to be in place by Easter.  The coalition will assure stability in Europe, as Germany is the wealthiest European state, especially within the European Union, of which Germany is the largest member.  In the parliamentary elections last month, the ruling conservatives won the most seats, but were short of a majority.  A left-right grand coalition previously ruled with Merkel as Chancellor. 

Left-right coalitions of various kinds have become common in Europe in recent years.  The United Kingdom had one, as do Greece and Italy currently.  

Germany is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and is an ally of the United States also in the War on Terrorism.