German conservative leader Friedrich Merz reached an agreement with the Green party on a debt-funded spending package for defense and infrastructure, overcoming a key hurdle ahead of a crunch vote in parliament next week.

German Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz was set to make a last-ditch attempt on Friday to convince the Greens of his plans for a massive increase in state borrowing to bolster defence and infrastructure ahead of a parliamentary vote next week.

German conservative leader Friedrich Merz reached a tentative agreement with the Green party on a debt-funded spending package for defense and infrastructure, people familiar with the discussions said.

BERLIN — Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting in a fiery Bundestag debate Thursday urged Green lawmakers to pass constitutional amendments that would unleash up to €1 trillion in new spending to bolster the country’s military and invest in its economy.

The deal jointly proposed by the center-right CDU, whose leader Friedrich Merz is likely Germany's next chancellor, and center-left Social Democrats also calls for a €500 billion special fund for infrastructure spending.

German Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz is open to making concessions to the Greens to secure support for constitutional changes that would unleash hundreds of billions of euros in defense and infrastructure spending.