Europe's news in English

COPY LINK

POLITICS

Merkel denies resignation rumours

Chancellor Angela Merkel has denied a report in Der Spiegel magazine that she plans to resign ahead of the 2017 elections.

Published: 14 July 2014 10:05 CEST

Merkel denies resignation rumours

Merkel has refuted rumours that she plans to step down early. Photo: DPA

According to the report in Der Spiegel, high-ranking sources close to the chancellor claim she is planning to leave her position before the end of her third term, and will consider a new role, including UN Secretary-General and President of the European Commission Council.

The move would make her the first German head of office to voluntarily step down since 1949.

"She is really very tempted", a member of Merkel's cabinet told the magazine.

Merkel pledged to serve a full term in office during last year's elections, and party spokesmen have denied all allegations that she may leave early.

The chancellor herself dispelled the claims in a television interview on TV station ZDF on Saturday. "I plan to work through the term as chancellor and then we will see." That "obviously" holds true for the full term, she confirmed.

Merkel also refuted her supposed interest in succeeding Ban Ki-moon as UN General-Secretary, telling ZDF it would "certainly not happen".

SEE ALSO: Merkel laments breakdown of trust with USA

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.

Become a Member to leave a comment.

Aide to German far-right MEP arrested on suspicion of spying for China

The man, named only as Jian G., stands accused of sharing information about negotiations at European Parliament with a Chinese intelligence service and of spying on Chinese opposition figures in Germany, federal prosecutors said in a statement.

On the website of the European Parliament, Jian Guo is listed as an accredited assistant to MEP Maximilian Krah, the far-right AfD party’s lead candidate in the forthcoming EU-wide elections.

He is a German national who has reportedly worked as an aide to Krah in Brussels since 2019.

The suspect “is an employee of a Chinese secret service”, prosecutors said.

“In January 2024, the accused repeatedly passed on information about negotiations and decisions in the European Parliament to his intelligence service client.

“He also spied on Chinese opposition members in Germany for the intelligence service.”

The suspect was arrested in the eastern German city of Dresden on Monday and his homes were searched, they added.

The accused lives in both Dresden and Brussels, according to broadcasters ARD, RBB and SWR, who broke the news about the arrest.

The AfD said the allegations were “very disturbing”.

“As we have no further information on the case, we must wait for further investigations by federal prosecutors,” party spokesman Michael Pfalzgraf said in a statement.

The case is likely to fuel concern in the West about aggressive Chinese espionage.

It comes after Germany on Monday arrested three German nationals suspected of spying for China by providing access to secret maritime technology.

READ ALSO: Germany arrests three suspected of spying for China

China’s embassy in Berlin “firmly” rejected the allegations, according to Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua.

According to German media, the two cases are not connected.

In Britain on Monday, two men were charged with handing over “articles, notes, documents or information” to China between 2021 and last year.

Police named the men as Christopher Berry, 32, and Christoper Cash, 29, who previously worked at the UK parliament as a researcher.

Url copied to clipboard!