Reconstruction in Germany: How will election results affect Russia 

Kremlin relations

Angela Merkel left the post of head of the Christian Democratic Union party and, accordingly, became the former chancellor of Germany after losing the election. The race for the dominant place in the Bundestag was won by the Social Democratic Party.

Three parties competed for the lead in the 2021 elections. “The Christian-Democratic Union”, until recently led by Angela Merkel, this time had the worst result in history, receiving 24.1% of the vote. They came in second place. The new Green Party, which unexpectedly gained popularity during the election campaign, was in third place with 14.8% of the votes.The Social Democratic Party won, pulling away from its rivals with 25.7% of the vote. In total, a record number of 735 deputies entered parliament.

Russian.RT.com

During her rather long reign – 16 years – Angela Merkel managed to become one of the most influential politicians on the world stage, although her political activities to this day receive very mixed reviews.


“Merkel’s legacy: defender of clear rules for the world order”, — was the headline today in the British Independent.

“Angela Merkel’s Legacy – Chaos at Home and Abroad”, — writes the Telegraph.

“Angela Merkel leaves behind a transatlantic cooling”, — the influential Wall Street Journal wrote about her on the eve of the election.

The coronavirus epidemic has hit economies all over the world, and Germany was no exception. The former chancellor’s soft migration policy only worsened the situation, putting many Germans out of work. Although Merkel led Germany through the Greek debt crisis, the migration crisis and other difficult times, she did much good for her country and the European Union.

After the departure of the “Iron Frau”, the heads of the three main parties are fighting for the post of chancellor: Armin Lachet, Annalena Birbock and Olaf Scholz (head of the Social Democratic Party), who is predicted to win this battle.

BBC.com

The Christian Democratic and Social Democratic parties will be the “successors” to Angela Merkel’s policy. They are in favor of an open dialogue with Russia, although they do not intend to lift the sanctions. They are also in favor of strengthening international structures such as the United Nations. The US will remain one of Germany’s most important partners. The leading parties are in favor of strengthening EU sovereignty and oppose full EU membership for Turkey. Politicians consider China to be  their most serious foreign-policy opponent, although they do not rule out dialogue with Beijing.

The rise to power of the Social Democrats, particularly Scholz, should have a positive impact on Russian-German relations. The promised “North Stream-2” support from the new ruling parties, in particular, will not have a detrimental effect on the relationship between the two countries and the Russian economy.