Friedrich Merz, the leader of the centre-Right Christian Democratic Union party (CDU), has emerged as the winner of Germany’s elections.

Mr Merz, 69, managed to fend off the far-Right by adopting a “tough-guy” populist stance on migration and vowed to make Germany a key European security player.

However, the Right-wing AfD surged into second after performing very strongly in the former Communist East, where there is intense opposition to mass migration and costly support for Ukraine.

Mr Merz now needs to build a coalition government, a process that could take several months and involve a fair few hurdles.

Here are six things we learnt from the German elections, and how they will affect Mr Merz’s chances of redefining the country’s defence policy and borders.

AfD will be a fearsome opposition force

With around 20 per cent of the vote, the AfD is now the main German opposition party. It is the first time a hard-Right party has secured that role in Germany’s post-war history.

That lends stature and credibility to a movement which Germany’s traditional parties have long sought to dismiss as too extreme. For the AfD, the next job is to use its time in opposition to prepare for a more serious bid for power in the 2029 elections.