The leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the second largest party in parliament after Sunday's election, said Germany's likely next chancellor would be held hostage by left-wing parties that would seek to loosen tough fiscal rules.

German election winner Friedrich Merz faces serious hurdles to boosting defence spending in Europe’s largest nation after parties opposed to arming Ukraine secured enough seats to prevent an easing of the country’s strict limits on public borrowing.

Following the electoral success of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), the party's chairwoman, Alice Weidel, is already setting her sights on the next federal election. She stated on a programme featuring the main party leaders on German public broadcasters ARD and ZDF on Sunday evening that the winning conservative bloc could not form a