Merkel: German party leaders face 'a lot of work' to form government

"The way is free for coalition negotiations," said Merkel ahead of a meeting of Christian Democrats (CDU) executives, adding that party leaders face "a lot of work" in coming weeks to forge a new government.
She said that her aim was to form a stable government and that the exploratory talks between the SPD and her conservatives that ended earlier this month would form the basis of the coalition talks.