German Chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz said on Friday he had secured the crucial backing of the Greens for a massive increase in state borrowing, clearing the way for the outgoing parliament to approve it next week.

The apparent deal with the Greens paves the way for up to €1 trillion in new spending for defense and infrastructure.

The deal jointly proposed by the center-right CDU, whose leader Friedrich Merz is likely Germany's next chancellor, and center-left Social Democrats also calls for a €500 billion special fund for infrastructure spending.