Europe must seek to “achieve independence” from the United States, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said after his opposition conservatives won elections on Sunday, in a vote that also saw surging support for the far-right.

Germany's likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz told Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu that he would invite him to Germany in defiance of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Israeli prime minister's office said on Monday.

Friedrich Merz is set to become Germany’s next chancellor after his centre-Right Christian Democratic Union [CDU] party won the election on Sunday night.

Provisional results in Germany’s election confirmed that mainstream conservatives won German’s national election, while a far-right party surged to become the nation’s second-largest party.

AfD's rise to become the second-largest party in Germany on Sunday's election is a boost to the country's conservative movement—and to Elon Musk as well.

Friedrich Merz, likely Germany's next chancellor, said he was under "no illusions" about the White House's impact on campaigning as the far-right AfD surged to a historic high.

Germany’s economy is stalled and its politics fractured. But it sees an opening for a new chancellor to lead Europe’s response to a changing America.

Merz expressed concern over changing relations with Washington under the Trump administration, emphasizing the need for gradual independence from the U.S.

By Kirsti Knolle and Madeline Chambers BERLIN (Reuters) -German conservatives under Friedrich Merz vowed on Monday to quickly form a government after winning a national election but face tricky coalition talks and the prospect of an obstructive parliament after far-right and far-left parties surged.

While the far right made historic gains in Germany’s pivotal federal elections on Sunday, the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party ultimately thrived with Friedrich Merz securing nearly 29% of the vote and placing him in the top spot to lead the country.