<span style="color: #222222;">German Social Democrat Olaf Scholz will head a three-party coalition, bringing the curtain down on the Angela Merkel era.<br />''<br />''Almost two months after his Social Democrat party won federal elections, Scholz will go into power with the Greens and business-friendly Free Democrats. His  center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the ecologist Greens and the libertarian Free Democrats (FDP) want to accelerate the transition to a green economy and digitalisation while maintaining fiscal discipline, according to a 177-page agreement.<br />''<br />''Climate protection forms a big part of the coalition deal. The parties aim to phase out coal use by 2030, eight years ahead of schedule. Germany is Europe's biggest economy, so decisions taken by the new government will have a big effect on its neighbours.<br />''<br />''The first alliance at a federal level between the ideologically disparate parties will end 16 years of Merkel-led conservative government, marking a new era for relations with Europe and the rest of the world.<br />''<br />''At a news conference in Berlin yesterday, flanked by the FDP and Greens leaders, 63-year old Scholz at a news conference said that the sovereignty of Europe is a cornerstone of their foreign policy. He highlighted Germany's friendship with France and partnership with the United States.</span><br />