President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Friday dissolved Germany's lower house of parliament to pave the way for snap elections on Feb. 23 following the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-way coalition.

"Especially in difficult times, like now, stability requires a government capable of acting, and reliable majorities in parliament," which was why early elections were the right way forward for Germany, Steinmeier said in Berlin.

After the elections, problem-solving must become the core business of politics again, added Steinmeier in a speech.

The president, whose post has been largely ceremonial in the post-war era, also called for the election campaign to be conducted fairly and transparently.

Scholz, a Social Democrat who will head a caretaker government until a new one can be formed, lost a confidence vote in parliament earlier this month after the departure of Finance Minister Christian Lindner's Free Democrats left his unwieldy governing coalition without a legislative majority.