Angela Merkel sworn in as Germany's first female chancellor

BERLIN - Angela Merkel became Germany's first woman chancellor on Tuesday, ending months of political uncertainty and ushering in a fragile new coalition of left and right that must prove it can revive Europe's biggest economy.

Merkel, the 51-year-old pastor's daughter who started her political career after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, was confirmed in Germany's top post by a parliamentary vote in which 397 of the Bundestag's 614 members backed her - easily enough for the majority she needed in the lower house.

She becomes Germany's eighth postwar chancellor and the first one to have grown up in the former communist east.

"Dear Dr Merkel, you are now the first ever elected female head of government in Germany. That is a strong signal for many women, and certainly for some men too," joked parliamentary speaker Norbert Lammert, who later swore Merkel into office.

Her predecessor Gerhard Schroeder, who initially refused to cede his post when Merkel's conservatives narrowly beat his Social Democrats (SPD) in a September 18 election, was the first to congratulate Merkel after Lammert read the result to a hushed chamber.

Merkel has vowed to cut unemployment and repair ties with Washington, strained by Schroeder's vocal opposition to the US-led Iraq war.

But she enters office much weaker than she had hoped and with a majority of Germans convinced her unwieldy alliance, the first "grand coalition" since the 1960s, will not last a full four-year term.

Merkel's confirmation as chancellor comes two months after a tight election she had been expected to win easily, and a half year after Schroeder shocked the nation by calling for early polls.

The result left Merkel with little choice but to form a coalition with the SPD, arch-rivals of her party for decades.

During tough month-long coalition negotiations, Merkel, whose reformist zeal has been likened to that of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was forced to abandon her most ambitious plans for shaking up the German social welfare system.

She will have to hope that the central plank of her coalition programme - a bipartisan deal to bring the budget deficit back within EU limits by 2007 through higher sales taxes - will not hinder growth by cramping consumer spending.

Once Europe's motor, Germany now has one of the weakest growth rates in the 25-nation European Union.

Reviving the economy and slashing unemployment, which hit postwar highs under Schroeder, are the new government's main priorities.

With 397 votes, Merkel won more support in parliament than any previous chancellor, but 51 of the 448 deputies from her coalition chose not to support her.

"Perhaps it would have been nicer to have a '4' before the figure, but that's an aesthetic issue, not a question of stability in the coming years," said her new Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Merkel represents a generational change and a break in style from the flamboyant Schroeder, who favoured Italian suits and fat cigars and seemed most at ease when in the media spotlight.

Her low-key approach -- on display on Tuesday as she sat in the lower house of parliament with a restrained smile and sober black suit -- has been mocked in the German media.

But some commentators believe it is tailor-made for her new coalition, which bridges right and left and will require steady, delicate management.

Her cabinet is dominated by pragmatists and the ruling parties enjoy majorities in both the Bundestag and Bundesrat, the upper house. The government's stability could also be helped by a strong sense within the rival camps that failure could prompt voters to abandon them in any early elections.

"Damned to succeed," was the headline in top-selling German daily Bild on Tuesday.

Merkel will not sit back and savour her victory for long.

On Wednesday she travels to Paris to meet French President Jacques Chirac and then on to Brussels to see EU and Nato officials.

On Thursday she is due to dine in London with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who will welcome her as a reform-minded ally within the EU after his frequent clashes with Schroeder over the years.

- REUTERS