(L-R) German Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder, the CDU's main candidate for the upcoming regional elections in the western federal state of Rheinland-Pfalz Gordon Schnieder, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Niedax CEO Bruno Reufels attend the opening ceremony of a Tech Campus and Experience Center "Synnoscape" of the Niedax Infrastructure company in Neustadt (Wied), western Germany, on February 2, 2026. (Photo by Martin Meissner / POOL AP / AFP via Getty Images)