In a recent interview with The Economist, Friedrich Merz, who is likely soon to be chancellor of Germany, said that there would be no return to Russian gas “for the time being”, but conspicuously failed to rule out the possibility.

The Kremlin said on Monday it would have to wait and see how ties between Russia and any new German government evolved after Sunday's election victory for Friedrich Merz's conservatives, saying there could be areas of cooperation of mutual interest.

Friedrich Merz, whose conservative party is ahead in polls before Sunday’s election, sees an “epochal rupture” with a United States that is more aligned with Russia.

The election came as Germany and the rest of Europe grapple with the new Trump administration, the Russia-Ukraine war and security across the continent. German exit polls show opposition leader Friedrich Merz’s conservatives leading in the election,

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Outgoing German chancellor Olaf Scholz conceded the election and decried the historic gains of the far-right conservative party, AfD. Early exit polls show AfD is headed for second place, while opposition leader Friedrich Merz’s conservatives are in the lead and Scholz’s party fell to third.

Germany's mainstream conservatives have won the country's national election, while a far-right party surged to become the country's second-largest party.

Friedrich Merz is Europe's last hope, provided that he goes beyond the caricature of the chancellor created under the governments of Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz. This opinion was expressed by the publicist of the Polish edition "For the Future" Jakub Melnik.

The conservative party in Germany dominated elections during the weekend, with Friedrich Merz poised to become the nation's next chancellor.