DEVELOPING Germany's SPD opens the way for new coalition with Merkel

Berlin (dpa) - Germany‘s Social Democrats (SPD) opened the way Thursday for forging a new coalition with Angela Merkel after voting by a large majority at a party conference to hold talks with the chancellor‘s conservatives.SPD chief Martin Schulz had called on party members to abandon their reluctance to rejoin Merkel in a coalition and to enter exploratory talks for forging a new government with her conservative Christian Democrats and their Bavarian-based Christian Social Union allies.However, in a series of impassioned speeches many SPD delegates spoke out strongly against teaming up with Merkel again after the party‘s vote sank to its lowest level since 1949 at the September national election and criticized Schulz‘s leadership.dpa amc sdl