Germany's mainstream conservatives won the country's national election, while a far-right party surged to become the nation’s second-largest party, according to provisional results following Sunday’s election.

Germany's conservative CDU leader Friedrich Merz welcomed on Monday the interest shown by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in improving ties with Europe, adding that the two had spoken several time in the last few weeks.

Friedrich Merz is on course to become post-World War II Germany’s 10th chancellor, the culmination of a yearslong political career that was once sidelined by his party’s iconic leader

German conservative leader Friedrich Merz, the country's presumptive next chancellor, has again ruled out cooperating with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) after Sunday's parliamentary election.