Germany’s constitutional court has upheld the country’s participation in a fund which can bail out troubled governments in the eurozone.

Germany’s US and European allies welcome Berlin’s promise of a more robust foreign and security policy, but with no appetite at home for troops to fight, it may mean little more than extra logistical help and tougher rhetoric.

Germany’s Social Democrats want to strip euro policymaking out of the finance ministry in chancellor Angela Merkel’s third term, according to three people familiar with the party’s negotiating strategy.

Nearly two-thirds of Germans oppose giving heavily indebted countries in the eurozone more time to meet reform commitments, according to a poll published yesterday that highlights the domestic political constraints facing chancellor Angela Merkel.