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[alivewithclive]

“Merz has called for an ultimatum to Moscow after which Ukraine could receive the much-desired Taurus missiles, powerful weapons that Scholz refused to provide. He also urged Europe to take up leadership in the pro-Kyiv coalition amid uncertainty about Trump’s presidency.” ~ @kyivindependent_official 🇺🇦💙💛🇩🇪

#Repost @kyivindependent_official with @use.repost_ . . . For the second time in his life, Friedrich Merz is a step away from taking charge of Germany.

Losing the fight to control the Christian Democratic Union in 2002 to future Chancellor Angela Merkel and forced to retire from politics a few years later, Merz is now the frontrunner to lead the Union back into government.

With Germany’s ruling center-left coalition in tatters, Ukraine’s leading European backer is heading toward snap elections set for Feb. 23. And it’s all but certain that Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a Social Democrat, will lose his post as a result.

The domestic turmoil comes at a critical moment for Ukraine as Russia holds the upper hand on the battlefield, and Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House may lead to a decreased U.S. involvement in the war.

Yet, not all is grim for Kyiv.

Polls predict a sweeping victory for the center-right Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU), whose leader Merz seems ready to ditch Scholz’s cautious Ukraine strategy.

Merz has called for an ultimatum to Moscow after which Ukraine could receive the much-desired Taurus missiles, powerful weapons that Scholz refused to provide. He also urged Europe to take up leadership in the pro-Kyiv coalition amid uncertainty about Trump’s presidency.

For that, the 69-year-old conservative has his work cut out for him.

With a real possibility of a U.S. withdrawal, rising Ukraine-skeptic parties in Germany on the left and right, and an increasingly tight budget, Merz must cross a string of obstacles to deliver on his plans.

Read the full story at the link in bio.

Photo: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images

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