Friedrich Merz, the leader of the victorious party in Germany’s snap parliamentary elections, CDU, says that the former Chancellor Angela Merkel has yet to congratulate him on his victory.

According to Zeit Online, Merz announced this during a press conference in Berlin on 24 February.

Merz said that he has received many congratulatory messages after his victory in the snap elections held on 23 February but they did not come from the former CDU’s Chancellor Angela Merkel who ruled Germany between 2005-2021.

“I haven’t seen any congratulations from Angela Merkel. Perhaps I missed them, because last night I received several hundred text messages,” the politician said. Merkel, in 2002, had replaced Merz as leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group before becoming Germany’s Chancellor.

Merz and Merkel have a history of difficult relations, with Merz criticizing her for 2015 policy failures, and Merkel taking a swipe at Merz for his collaboration with AfD on an anti-immigration bill.

Merkel is known for her Putin-friendly policies, which helped Germany cement its dependency on cheap Russian fossil fuels. She’s also the chief European politician who obstructed Ukraine’s NATO membership in 2008.

Merz is known for his tough stance on immigration and is committed to enhancing the European security architecture as US President’s administration makes it clear that is no longer willing to foot the European security bill.