Martin Schulz, the leader of Germany's Social Democrats (SPD), has said he will step down as leader following the party's coalition agreement with Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU).
Mr Schulz indicated he wanted to be the country's foreign minister if the SPD's members vote to approve the coalition deal.
Ms Merkel's conservative CDU, its Bavaria-only sister the Christian Social Union, and the SPD shook hands on a 177-page deal that leads off with the promise of "a new awakening for Europe" after a gruelling 24 hours of negotiations.
Social Democrat leaders now have one last major hurdle to overcome - winning their sceptical members' approval over the deal.
Mr Schulz said that pending members' approval he would "fight for the renewal" of the European Union as foreign minister.
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