Author: DW

It’s a Friday morning in February, and we are driving through Maryland to speak with US soybean farmers. US President Donald Trump had just announced plans to establish sweeping trade levies on a number of major US trading partners, including Canada, Mexico, the European Union, and China.  As I pass by corn and soybean fields, I can’t help but wonder what farmers think about these developments. Can they navigate the uncertainty of an unpredictable Trump administration? Trump has long enjoyed strong support from the US farming community, often citing his understanding of their struggles. However, this time, many farmers face uncertainty…

Marine Le Pen’s political career lies in tatters.After decades of plotting her ascent to the very pinnacle of French politics, she has now been pushed down the mountain, and her fall could be long and painful. The far-right leader, who had been the narrow favourite to win the 2027 French presidential election, will now be banned from running for public office for five years as part of a criminal conviction. Image: Marine Le Pen. Pic: AP Marine Le Pen latest: ‘Catastrophic end of political career’Le Pen, along with politicians and assistants from her National Rally (RN) party, has been found…

Richard Chamberlain, who rose to fame as the star of the 1960s American television series “Dr. Kildare,” has died at the age of 90, publicist Harlan Boll said. Chamberlain, who starred in a series of mini-series of the 1980s, like “Shogun” and “The Thorn Birds,” died on March 29, in Hawaii, following complications from a stroke, Boll said in a statement on Sunday. The 90-year-old enjoyed a six decade-career after becoming a teen idol when he starred as Dr. James Kildare in the series that ran from 1961-1966. Chamberlain, whose career spanned theater, films and television, was dubbed the “king of the mini-series” after appearing in several…

One in three adults report some sort of insomnia and around half of those say it disrupts their functioning in the day. A big culprit of sleep disturbances is phone use before sleep — lying on your back in bed, bathed in the white light of the internet. A new study has found an hour of screen use in bed increases your risk of insomnia by 59% and lowers sleep duration by an average of 24 minutes per night. The data is the latest showing that being on your phone or laptop before bed has a negative effect on sleep…

US President Donald Trump on Sunday expressed anger with Russian President Vladimir Putin and threatened secondary tariffs on Russian oil should the two not reach a deal to stop fighting in Ukraine. The reported comments come amid the Trump administration’s push to end to the war between Russia and Ukraine. Trump ‘angry’ with Putin over call for new administration in Ukraine NBC journalist Kristen Welker said Trump had called her in an exclusive interview and expressed his frustration at the Russian leader. “If Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it…

A French court is set to rule on Monday in the trial of far-right leader Marine Le Pen over an alleged embezzlement scheme. Le Pen said her “political death” is at stake as the court prepares to rule on on whether she and members of her National Rally (RN) party misused €3 million ($3.25 million) in European Parliament funds meant for parliamentary assistants. Prosecutors allege the money was used to pay France-based party staff between 2004 and 2016, violating EU rules. Le Pen, 56, denies wrongdoing, calling the case a political attack aimed at ending her career.  “There are 11 million people…

More than 4,000 exhibitors are expected to showcase their innovations at what is billed as the world’s largest industrial trade fair, with visitors from approximately 150 countries expected. As in previous years, the fair is a must on the calender especially of small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) from Germany and elsewhere, who are aiming to present their latest innovations — with the main focus this year being on robotics, mechanical engineering, power-train technology, and energy production.Smart factories — the industry of the futureTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video…

Donald Trump has said he was “very angry” and “pissed off” after Vladimir Putin criticised the credibility of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a phone call with Sky News’ US partner network, NBC News.Mr Trump said the Russian president’s recent comments, calling for a transitional government to be put in place in Ukraine in a move that could effectively push out Mr Zelenskyy, were “not going in the right direction”. It is a rare move by Mr Trump to criticise Mr Putin, who he has generally spoken positively about during discussions to end the war in Ukraine.Last month, he also…

Pradeep Kumar, 24, a postgraduate from Kanpur has been struggling with gambling addiction for two years. It has led to him frequently taking loans from multiple sources to feed his habit.  “On one occasion, he lost over 125,000 Indian rupees (€1,350) in a cricketing app that nearly destroyed him. We take him for counseling, but he keeps falling back into his addictive behavior. These apps promise easy money,” Ranjani, his mother, told DW.  Kumar’s story is not uncommon in India. There are many stories of individuals, especially young people, losing significant sums which put severe financial strain on families. In the…

A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake has struck central Myanmar, with an epicenter 15km (10 miles) north-west of the city of Sagaing. A 6.4 magnitude aftershock followed closely behind. Early reports suggest damage to buildings and buckled roads in Myanmar’s capital, Naypyidaw.  Strong tremors were felt in neighboring countries Thailand and south-west China. Earthquakes don’t commonly affect Thailand, meaning buildings in Bangkok, Thailand’s capital, are not engineered to withstand powerful earthquakes.   Early reports suggest the structural damage in Bangkok could be significant. Thai authorities have declared a state of emergency in Bangkok.You can follow the developing news story here. How do…