German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (2nd L) shakes hands with Bavaria's State Premier and leader of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) party Markus Soeder (2nd R) as he arrives to attend a session on November 13, 2024 at the Bundestag (lower house of parliament) in Berlin, where he was expected to give a speech, following the breakdown of his three-party coalition; at (L) is CSU politician Alexander Dobrindt, at (R) is Lower Saxony's State Premier and SPD politician Stephan Weil. Germany is headed for snap elections on February 23, the main parties agreed on November 12, aiming to form a stable government after Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-party coalition collapsed on November 6, 2024. The agreement seeks to quickly restore political stability at a time when Europe's biggest economy is set to shrink for a second year in a row and amid heightened geopolitical volatility, with wars raging in Ukraine and the Middle East and president-elect Donald Trump readying to take power in the US in January 2025. (Photo by Tobias SCHWARZ / AFP) (Photo by TOBIAS SCHWARZ/AFP via Getty Images)