Berlin - One of the top names in German Chancellor Angela
Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and a possible contender to become
future head of the country, Friedrich Merz, on Tuesday told dpa that
he had tested positive for Covid-19.
Merz, a long-standing rival of Merkel's whose policies lean further
to the right, is one of three candidates currently vying for the top
role in her conservative party.
"A coronavirus test carried out on Sunday came back as positive. I
will be in home quarantine until the end of next week," Merz said.
"Luckily I only have mild to moderate symptoms," the 64-year-old
said, adding that he was cancelling all appointments and following
the local health authority's instructions.
Merz is hoping to take over the party reins from Annegret
Kramp-Karrenbauer, who was seen as Merkel's hand-picked successor
until she succumbed to a number of gaffes since her election in late
2018.
There is a strong chance that the new CDU leader will be the
conservatives' candidate to succeed Merkel as chancellor of Germany
in next year's election, when she plans to bow out of politics.
The coronavirus pandemic has already disrupted the race for the CDU
leadership, after forcing the party to postpone its special
conference to elect a new head from April 25 until an unknown date.
Merz' diagnosis has also raised questions about which high-ranking
CDU functionaries he has had contact with.
Armin Laschet, another one of the three CDU leadership contenders,
responded with a curt "no" when asked by journalists whether he has
had direct contact with Merz in recent days.
As in many countries across Europe and elsewhere, life in Germany has
changed dramatically in recent days in response to the coronavirus
pandemic.
Drastic measures have been taken to reduce people's movements, with
schools shut across most of the country, border controls in place and
strict advice against socializing.
Germany stepped up its advice against travel on Tuesday, with the
government issuing a global travel warning in response to the
pandemic.
Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said up to 50 million euros
(55.6 million dollars) would be spent on special flights to bring
thousands of German tourists home, speaking of an "airlift."
The government's agency for disease control has upped the threat
posed by the outbreak across the country from "moderate" to "high."
Robert Koch Institute President Lothar Wieler said the reassessment
was based on increasing infections and warning signs from public
health facilities and hospitals.
Berlin plans to build a new hospital for up to 1,000 Covid-19
patients, the city's health minister said.
The facility is to be built on the Messe Berlin exhibition grounds in
cooperation with the army, minister Dilek Kalayci said.
An increasing number of infections in Germany cannot be traced back
to known cases.
Over 6,000 infections have been confirmed in the country so far,
including 13 deaths.
Health Minister Jens Spahn, Laschet's running mate in the CDU race,
on Tuesday appealed for patience as hotlines dealing with requests
for coronavirus testing were overwhelmed.
He noted that over 100,000 tests were carried out in the past week
alone by medical facilities covered by state-supported health
insurers.
The coronavirus is also taking its toll on the German economy, with
economists' forecasts taking their hardest-ever hit since the ZEW
research institute began conducting its closely-watched surveys.
The ZEW economic indicator for March plunged by 58.2 points on the
previous month to minus 49.5 points, marking the indicator's farthest
fall since it was launched in late 1991.
A drop into negative territory shows an overwhelmingly negative
outlook among analysts.
The crisis is broadly expected to drag Europe's largest economy into
its first recession since 2009, according to ZEW President Professor
Achim Wambach.