Category Archives: Germany

Ford to cut nearly 4,000 jobs in Europe, including 1,300 in UK

Posted on by

US carmaker blames losses on rising costs and need to switch to electric vehicle production

The British car industry faces the prospect of further steep job cuts without urgent government support for electric vehicle investment, a union leader has warned, after Ford revealed 1,300 UK redundancies in its internal combustion operations.

The US carmaker said it planned to eliminate 3,800 product development and administration jobs across Europe, citing rising costs and the need to speed up its switch from petrol and diesel engines to electric vehicles.

Continue reading...

German ballet director ‘smeared dog faeces on critic’s face’ after bad review

Posted on by

Marco Goecke allegedly confronted Wiebke Hüster at Hanover State Opera, furious at her verdict on a previous show

The director of a leading German ballet company has been suspended from his post and is being investigated by police after allegedly smearing a critic’s face with his dog’s excrement at the premiere of his new show after she described one of his productions as “boring” and “disjointed”.

Marco Goecke, the head of Hanover State Opera’s ballet company, has also been barred from the opera house, a spokesperson confirmed on Monday afternoon, after he confronted Wiebke Hüster, the ballet critic of Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), in the interval of his latest show on Sunday night.

Continue reading...

EU tipped to avoid recession after gas crisis eases

Posted on by

Economic growth forecast to be 0.8% in 2023 but households still face cost of living pressures

The EU is predicted to narrowly avoid recession as a result of a milder-than-expected energy shock, although households face difficult times ahead as cost of living pressures ease only gradually, the European Commission has said.

Economic growth for the 27 countries of the EU is forecast to be 0.8% in 2023, compared with a 0.3% projection last autumn, when fears of winter power outages and the rising cost of living ran high. In the 20-country eurozone, the economy will expand by 0.9% in 2023, boosted by a better-than-expected performance in Germany and Italy, as well as relatively stronger growth in Spain.

Continue reading...

Germany approves Leopard 1 battle tank exports to Ukraine

Posted on by

Package of 29 older tanks could be sent to help fight Russia as soon as refurbishments done, reports say

Germany has approved the export of older Leopard 1 battle tanks, which would add to the raft of fighting vehicles Berlin promised last week it would send to Ukraine.

A spokesperson said on Friday that Olaf Scholz’s government had granted an export licence for the German-made tanks first produced in the 1960s and replaced within Germany’s own military by Leopard 2 tanks in 2003. Further details would be provided in the coming days and weeks, they said.

Continue reading...

Descendants of Namibia’s genocide victims call on Germany to ‘stop hiding’

Posted on by

Herero and Nama people demand direct talks and take Namibian government to court for accepting reparations on their behalf for 1904-1908 killings

Descendants of victims of genocide in Namibia have called on Germany to “stop hiding” and discuss reparations with them directly, as they take their own government to court for making a deal without their approval.

The Herero and Nama people have gone to Namibia’s high court, rejecting an apology made in 2021 after years of talks between Namibia and Germany, which they say falls short of atoning for the 1904 to 1908 genocide, the first of the 20th century.

Continue reading...

‘Doppelganger murder’: German prosecutors claim woman killed lookalike to fake death

Posted on by

Ingolstadt body identified by family as 23-year-old German-Iraqi woman was later found to be Algerian blogger

A 23-year-old German-Iraqi woman sought out a lookalike on Instagram and murdered her with a friend in order to fake her own death, prosecutors in Bavaria believe.

When the blood-covered body of a young woman was found last August in a parked Mercedes in Ingolstadt, southern Germany, reports initially identified the victim as Sharaban K, a Munich-based 23-year-old beautician with Iraqi roots.

Continue reading...

Germany defiant that ‘lockstep’ with US on weapons is the best for Ukraine

Posted on by

Olaf Scholz was criticised for being slow to supply tanks but working with allies keeps chancellor’s public on side

Germany’s government is defiant, maintaining that its lockstep approach to weapons deliveries is the best way to support Ukraine, and the only way it can do so while keeping its domestic public on side. Allies of Chancellor Olaf Scholz accuse his critics of being “dedicated” to making him a scapegoat.

The German leader faced mounting criticism last week from international and domestic partners over the protracted decision to supply Ukraine with Leopard 2 battle tanks, which are made in Germany and required authorisation by Berlin for re-export from other countries.

Continue reading...

Ukraine says US and German tank pledges ‘only the beginning’ and calls for fighter jets

Posted on by

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised the decision by western allies but urged speed in the delivery of new weaponry

Commitments from the United States and Germany to send advanced battle tanks to counter Russian aggression has been hailed as “only the beginning” by a senior official in Ukraine, who said hundreds of tanks were needed, as Kyiv renewed its calls for fighter jets.

Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine’s presidential administration, made the comments as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised the decision by western allies, urging them to provide large quantities of tanks quickly.

Continue reading...

US joins Germany in sending tanks to Ukraine as Biden hails ‘united’ effort

Posted on by

President lauds ‘unflagging commitment to Ukraine’ as officials approve 31 M1 Abrams tanks to add to Germany’s 14 Leopard 2A6s

Joe Biden has approved sending 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, a significant escalation in the US effort to counter Russian aggression as international reluctance to send tanks to the battlefront falls away.

The reversal of the US’s previous position came after Germany confirmed it will make 14 of its Leopard 2A6 tanks available for Ukraine’s war effort, and give partner countries its permission to re-export other battle tanks to aid Kyiv.

Continue reading...

Scholz’s caution over tanks for Ukraine echoed on Berlin streets

Posted on by

German chancellor’s hesitation about sending Leopard 2 vehicles finds sympathy among public

The hesitation with which the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, arrived at Wednesday’s decision to send a company of Leopard 2 battle tanks to Ukraine, also allowing other European states to deliver more, has frustrated partners in Europe and puzzled political allies in Berlin. But to Hilde Blücher the pace was just right.

“I thought it was likable that he was wavering”, said the 73-year-old pensioner from the Düsseldorf area, passing by the Russian embassy on Berlin’s Unter den Linden boulevard on a visit to the capital. “I think the decision is right, but it was also right to take time to think it through.”

Continue reading...

Western unity is critical, but Ukraine needs more than tanks to win this war

Posted on by

Washington joins Berlin in agreeing to send tanks – but offer will only go so far to keep Russians at bay

It has felt like an interminable wait, but in fact Germany’s hesitation over Leopard 2 tanks lasted only a few days. Berlin has got what it wanted – more cover from the US – although it had to pretend at one point it didn’t want it.

With Washington agreeing, in principle, to send some of its gas-guzzling Abrams tanks at some point, chancellor Olaf Scholz has scored a diplomatic victory. Berlin is now not alone in sending homemade tanks to Ukraine and can portray itself as not simply being bullied into agreement.

Continue reading...

US poised to send dozens of Abrams tanks to Ukraine in policy U-turn – reports

Posted on by

Decision comes just days after Washington argued against sending the Abrams and follows reports Berlin will send Leopard tanks to Ukraine

The United States appears poised to start a process that would eventually send dozens of its M1 Abrams battle tanks to Ukraine, US media reported, in a reversal that could have significant implications for Kyiv’s efforts to repel Russian forces.

The development prompted swift reaction from Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, who said it would be a “blatant provocation”.

Continue reading...

Berlin plans to send German Leopard tanks to Ukraine, according to reports

Posted on by

Germany will send its 2A6 battle tanks in conjunction with other countries such as Finland, Sweden and Poland, say reports citing government sources

Berlin has reportedly succumbed to huge international and domestic pressure and is set to announce that it will send German-manufactured tanks to Ukraine that Kyiv says it needs to push back Russian forces, according to media reports on Tuesday evening citing government sources.

It is reported to be planning to send a company of Leopard 2A6 battle tanks – usually comprising 14 of the vehicles – in conjunction with other partners, namely Scandinavian countries in possession of the units. Berlin is also understood to have said it would give its permission for export licences for countries such as Finland, Sweden and Poland who have bought the tanks from Germany, allowing them to be sent to Ukraine.

Continue reading...

Poland requests German permission to send Leopard tanks to Ukraine

Posted on by

German defence minister says he expects quick response, as application increases pressure on chancellor Olaf Scholz

The Polish government has requested Berlin’s permission to send its Leopard tanks to Ukraine after the German government appeared to say it would not block their export.

The submission of the application by Warsaw increases pressure on German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, to make a swift decision after he avoided the issue at an international meeting of defence ministers on Friday.

Continue reading...

Rohingya and Myanmar coup survivors launch legal complaint in Germany against junta

Posted on by

Survivors of alleged abuses at hands of military unite in universal jurisdiction case over atrocities they say amount to genocide

A criminal complaint against individuals linked to Myanmar’s military has been filed in Germany by survivors from ethnic groups across Myanmar, in what activists say is a show of unity that once seemed unthinkable.

Sixteen survivors and witnesses of military abuses joined NGO Fortify Rights to file a criminal complaint with the federal public prosecutor general of Germany under the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows the prosecution of mass atrocities in one country, even if they happened elsewhere.

Continue reading...

Poland ups pressure to send German-made tanks to Ukraine

Posted on by

PM Mateusz Morawiecki says Poland will ask for Germany’s go-ahead but answer is of ‘secondary importance’

Poland has reiterated that it is ready to send tanks to Ukraine without Germany’s consent, as pressure builds on Berlin to supply the heavy weapons that Kyiv has been calling for.

The Polish prime minister said his government would seek permission from Berlin to send its German-made Leopard tanks to Ukraine, but described that consent as of “secondary importance”.

Continue reading...

Five charged over second alleged far-right plot against German government

Posted on by

Four men and a woman accused of planning to abduct health minister and overthrow government

Five Germans have been charged with treason over an alleged far-right plot to overthrow the government that included plans to abduct the health minister, prosecutors have announced.

The four men and a woman were arrested in recent months over the plot, with the health minister, Karl Lauterbach – unpopular among far-right groups because of anti-Covid measures – confirming he was targeted.

Continue reading...

German minister says it ‘would not stand in way’ of Poland sending tanks to Ukraine

Posted on by

Annalena Baerbock makes clearest signal yet that European allies could deliver German-made hardware

Germany would not “stand in the way” of Poland sending Leopard tanks to Ukraine, foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, has said, in what appeared to be the clearest signal yet from Berlin that European allies could deliver the German-made hardware.

Asked in an interview with French television LCI what would happen if Poland sent its Leopard 2 tanks without German approval, Baerbock replied through a translator: “For the moment the question has not been asked, but if we were asked we would not stand in the way.”

Continue reading...

Ukraine frustrated as Germany holds back decision on supply of tanks

Posted on by

Poland says lives will be lost because of Berlin’s inaction, as summit breaks up without progress over Leopard 2s

Germany has declined to take a decision on whether to give Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine at a special international summit, prompting frustration in Kyiv and a warning from Poland that lives could be lost because of hesitation in Berlin.

It had been hoped in Europe and the US that Germany would at least allow Leopards owned by countries such as Poland and Finland to be re-exported, but despite days of pleading, Berlin’s newly appointed defence minister said no final decision had been taken.

Continue reading...

Poland could send Leopard tanks to Ukraine without German approval

Posted on by

Polish prime minister says key issue is to get military aid to Ukraine urgently, as US unveils fresh $2.5bn aid package including fighting vehicles but not tanks

The Polish prime minister has said his country would be willing to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine without securing Germany’s approval if Berlin does not agree to their re-export at Friday’s meeting of western defence ministers at Ramstein airbase.

Mateusz Morawiecki said in a radio interview on Thursday that “consent was of secondary importance” when it came to German-made tanks, because the key issue was to get military aid to Ukraine urgently.

Continue reading...