BERLIN: Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the head of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat party, will succeed Ursula von der Leyen as German defence minister, a source within the party told Reuters on Tuesday (Jul 16).

Von der Leyen, who was confirmed on Tuesday by the European Parliament as the next head of the European Union's executive, steps down from her German role on Tuesday.

Kramp-Karrenbauer, a close Merkel ally who is widely seen as the long-serving chancellor's favoured candidate to succeed her, currently has no government role, which critics say would make it more difficult for her to transition to the chancellorship. </s> BERLIN (Reuters) - Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, a close ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and head of her Christian Democrat party, will succeed Ursula von der Leyen as defense minister, government spokesman Steffen Seibert told Reuters.

Von der Leyen, who was confirmed on Tuesday by the European Parliament as the next head of the European Union’s executive commission, steps down from her German role on Tuesday.

The choice of Kramp-Karrenbauer, a follower of Merkel’s centrist politics, came as a surprise to many in Berlin, where many had expected Jens Spahn, the arch-conservative health minister, to take the defense job.

But Kramp-Karrenbauer, widely seen as the long-serving chancellor’s favored candidate to succeed her, currently has no government role, a reason critics have given in the past to oppose her possible rise to the chancellorship. </s> Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer was sworn in as Germany's new defense minister on Wednesday morning at a special session of the lower house of the German parliament, the Bundestag.

The ceremony itself had a makeshift air about it. German lawmakers were called in from their summer holidays to attend the ceremony, with some opposition members grumbling at the fact that attendance had been made obligatory (with non-attendees forced to pay a fine). Others also pointed out the cost of the extra session — estimated at €100,000 ($112,000).

The swearing-in took place in a provisional plenary hall rather than the main chamber, which is being renovated over the summer break.

In a speech, Kramp-Karrenbauer emphasized the special bond between the Bundestag and the German military, which requires parliamentary approval before any foreign mission.

The new minister has already called for an increase to the defense budget, a controversial demand for the junior partners of the government coalition, the Social Democratic Party (SPD).

The defense minister's seat was abruptly vacated last week, when the incumbent Ursula von der Leyen was elected as the new European Commission president by the European Parliament.

Kramp-Karrenbauer was a surprising choice for the post, given she has only recently been elected leader of Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), and had repeatedly promised that she would concentrate on reinvigorating the party ahead of crucial regional elections in the fall.

In the meantime, though, the CDU leadership appears to have decided that the 56-year-old former state premier of Saarland did need federal government experience after all. With the CDU still polling as Germany's biggest party, Kramp-Karrenbauer is currently in pole position to succeed Merkel as chancellor. </s> BERLIN (AP) — The new leader of Chancellor Angela Merkel's party is taking over Germany's defense ministry in a risky but potentially rewarding move, reversing her previous insistence that she wouldn't join the Cabinet.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer is to be formally appointed Wednesday as the successor to Ursula von der Leyen, who was elected Tuesday as the new head of the European Commission.

Kramp-Karrenbauer narrowly won the leadership of Merkel's center-right Christian Democratic Union in December. She has concentrated so far on trying to renew the party, among other things seeking to heal divisions with conservatives who were irked by Merkel's welcoming approach to migrants in 2015 and other moves.

However, she has seen her poll ratings drop sharply following several gaffes, and has struggled to raise her profile given that she lacks a seat in parliament and also wasn't in the Cabinet. Kramp-Karrenbauer had insisted in recent days that she would continue to concentrate on the party, but has now changed tack abruptly.

Merkel says she won't seek a fifth term as chancellor and it isn't yet clear who will run as the CDU's candidate for chancellor in Germany's next election — which is due in 2021 but could come earlier if her fractious coalition with the struggling center-left Social Democrats collapses.

The defense ministry offers Kramp-Karrenbauer, 56, who has served as governor of Saarland state but not in the federal government, a chance to gain foreign and security policy experience.

But it also is notoriously difficult to run, with concerns including the poor state of the German military's equipment and managing a transition from conscription to a professional force.

While von der Leyen's unexpected elevation to the European Union's top job after 5½ years as defense minister suggests that the post can be a springboard to promotion, it has left most recent occupants as diminished figures in domestic politics. Von der Leyen herself was long considered a potential successor to Merkel but faded out of contention while at the defense ministry.

An ambitious younger conservative who also ran in last year's CDU leadership election, Health Minister Jens Spahn, had been considered favorite to become defense minister. Kramp-Karrenbauer's move to take the job avoids giving a potential rival more exposure. </s> Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer was sworn in as Germany's new defense minister on Wednesday morning at a special session of the lower house of the German parliament, the Bundestag.

The ceremony itself had a makeshift air about it. German lawmakers were called in from their summer holidays to attend the ceremony, with some opposition members grumbling at the fact that attendance had been made obligatory (with non-attendees forced to pay a fine). Others also pointed out the cost of the extra session — estimated at €100,000 ($112,000).

The swearing-in took place in a provisional plenary hall rather than the main chamber, which is being renovated over the summer break.

In a speech, Kramp-Karrenbauer emphasized the special bond between the Bundestag and the German military, which requires parliamentary approval before any foreign mission.

The new minister also repeated her call for an increase to the defense budget, a controversial demand for some in the junior partners of the government coalition, the Social Democratic Party (SPD). But the US and other NATO partners have long demanded that Germany increase its budget to meet the alliance's target of spending 2% of GDP on defense.

"I am committed to the government's target of 2%, a target that all allies have repeatedly agreed to," Kramp-Karrenbauer said in her speech.

The defense minister's seat was abruptly vacated last week, when the incumbent Ursula von der Leyen was elected as the new European Commission president by the European Parliament.

Kramp-Karrenbauer was a surprising choice to take over, given she has only recently been elected leader of Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), and had repeatedly promised that she would concentrate on reinvigorating the party ahead of crucial regional elections in the fall.

In the meantime, though, the CDU leadership appears to have decided that the 56-year-old former state premier of Saarland did need federal government experience after all. With the CDU still polling as Germany's biggest party, Kramp-Karrenbauer is currently in pole position to succeed Merkel as chancellor.

In the hour-long debate after Kramp-Karrenbauer's speech, opposition members lost no time in criticizing the CDU for allegedly using the defense ministry as a training ground for a chancellor-in-waiting.

"The CDU is the biggest threat to our security," said Rüdiger Lucassen, of the Alternative for Germany (AFD). </s> STRASBOURG: The European Parliament on Tuesday confirmed Ursula von der Leyen, a German conservative, as the next president of the executive EU Commission by 383 votes to 327 against, the speaker of the assembly, David Sassoli, said.

Von der Leyen, a close ally of German Chancellor Angela Markel, needed a minimum 374 votes to be confirmed. There were 22 abstentions and one blank vote, he added. </s> Inglourious Basterds star Til Schweiger has taken aim at Germany’s new defence minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on social media and posted a collage, suggesting that the 56-year-old CDU chief might not be a good choice for the top job.

The meme picture that he posted included Kramp-Karrenbauer’s portrait along with the images of her counterparts – the newly-appointed US Secretary of Defence Mark Esper and Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu. While the two men looked seriously into the camera, wearing a smart suit and a uniform with medals respectively, AKK, as the German media has dubbed the CDU politician, was pictured dressed as a cleaning lady. Schweiger noted in the caption: “Epic!” and posted numerous ROFL emojis.

The German outlet Bild points out the photo was taken this February during a show at the Carnival in AKK’s home state Saarland. As the actor told the magazine, this picture caught his attention on Instagram, he thought it was funny and decided to share.

"It speaks for itself… I think the bargaining for the post and if Kramp-Karrenbauer will become chancellor is rather sad”, he said.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who succeeded Angela Merkel as the head of the CDU in December 2018, replaced former Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen on 24 July. The latter left the ministry after six years because she was elected EU Commission President.

The appointment is said to be surprising, considering that AKK earlier said she intended to concentrate on party leadership instead of government service, a DW report says. It also added that many had expected Health Minister Jens Spahn to become the new defence minister. </s> BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany’s Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen is being touted by Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, as a potential successor to Jean-Claude Juncker as head of the European Commission, Die Welt reported on Tuesday.

According to the newspaper, the conservative von der Leyen, a close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, would be the president of the bloc’s executive. Christine Lagarde, currently head of the International Monetary Fund, was being considered for the presidency of the European Central Bank, it added.

Other candidates being discussed included Belgium’s Prime Minister Charles Michel as a possible successor to Tusk as European Council president, the newspaper said. Slovakia’s Maros Sefcovic was being considered for the role of EU foreign policy head, it added. </s> German politician Ursula von der Leyen has been voted in as the new President of the European Commission. The Angela Merkel ally, who is the first woman to take on the role, said ahead of her election she would be willing to allow another Brexit extension beyond 31 October. She was confirmed in the role by a European Parliament vote of 383-327, with 22 abstentions.
President-elect of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen resigns from her position as Federal Minister of Defence of Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel appoints Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the leader of the ruling CDU, as her successor.