Author: DW

Daniel Freund isn’t mincing words about why the decision to release €10.2 billion in frozen funds to Hungary should be investigated.  “We think that this decision was illegal and we want this checked now by the court,” the German Green member of the European Parliament said, explaining why his party and a majority of lawmakers want the European Court of Justice to investigate the European Commission’s December 13 decision to release the funds.      The money released in December was part of a sum which had been withheld by the Commission a year earlier due its determination that Hungary was violating “rule…

Germany’s benchmark blue-chip stock index topped 18,000 points for the first time during trading on Wednesday morning, hitting 18,000.42 shortly after opening. The DAX, which is made up of 40 large publicly traded German corporations, has been on a strong run in recent days despite struggles for the overall German economy. The trend is a rare piece of positive money news out of Germany as of late. A few weeks ago, Germany’s economy minister, Robert Habeck, revised the country’s growth expectations for 2024, lowering the forecast from 1.3% to 0.2%. “The fact that the global economic environment is unstable and…

Daniel Freund isn’t mincing words about why the decision to release €10.2 billion in frozen funds to Hungary should be investigated.  “We think that this decision was illegal and we want this checked now by the court,” the German Green member of the European Parliament said, explaining why his party and a majority of lawmakers want the European Court of Justice to investigate the European Commission’s December 13 decision to release the funds.      The money released in December was part of a sum which had been withheld by the Commission a year earlier due its determination that Hungary was violating “rule…

Poland is recalling 50 of its ambassadors as Warsaw tries to improve diplomatic missions at a difficult time, with neighbouring Ukraine battling Russia’s full-scale war.The diplomats were all appointed by the populist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which had held power since 2015 before losing December’s general election. Those being recalled have not been named by Poland’s foreign ministry, which said in a statement the “necessary” move “will help to address the difficult challenges facing Poland’s foreign policy today in a better, more professional manner”.Ukraine war latest – Moldova angry as Russia opens voting in breakaway region Please use Chrome…

The buzzing came out of nowhere, said Mohammad Zakaria Junaidi. “I was about to get lunch for my wife and kids when an armed drone started chasing my motorbike,” Junaidi, a farmer in Syria’s northwest, told DW. “I thought that me and my two sons — who were with me on the motorbike — were about to die,” the 33-year-old father said as he recalled the situation from late February. “There is no place to hide on the street that connects the village and the fields,” he told DW. However, in an attempt to escape, he sped up the motorbike and entered a dirt…

Germany’s benchmark blue-chip stock index, the DAX, crossed the 18,000-point mark for the first time during trading on Wednesday morning shortly after opening. The DAX, which is made up of 40 large publicly traded German corporations, has been on a strong run recently despite struggles for the overall  German economy. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported that Germany’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.3%  in the last quarter of 2023. However, in January this year, Europe’s biggest economy recorded a jump with German companies hitting a 6.3% increase in the value of goods exported.What’s wrong with Germany’s economy?To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading…

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra made his first public appearance on Thursday since his early release from jail. He visited a Bangkok shrine in the morning before flying to the city of Chiang Mai in the north, his birthplace. The controversial billionaire was accompanied by his daughter Paetongtarn, the leader of the governing Pheu Thai party. He was only recently freed early from jail  after being convicted of graft and abuse of power. A divisive political figure Thaksin, a two-time prime minister and a divisive political figure was ousted in a 2006 coup. The 74-year-old politician spent 15 years in self-exile…

Russians are set to head to the polls for their country’s presidential election – with only one expected outcome.With Alexei Navalny dead in unexplained circumstances and opposition candidate Boris Nadezhdin barred from running, there is nobody remaining to pose a serious obstacle to another six years of rule by Vladimir Putin. Nonetheless, the election will be closely watched by those looking for insight into Russia’s political machinations, as well as opinions across wider Russian society.So what should we expect from polling day in Russia, and what does it mean for the war in Ukraine?Sky News takes a look at some…

UNESCO announced on Wednesday that it has added six new entries in Germany to the intangible cultural heritage list, including Berlin techno.  The German capital has become world famous for its vibrant techno scene. However, the Berlin clubs are still suffering from the aftermaths of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Lutz Leichsenring, a member of the executive board of “Clubcommission” in Berlin, a network of clubs and cultural promoters, told DW that the designation was “another milestone for Berlin techno producers, artists, club operators and event organizers.” Clubcommission also supports the preservation and development of Berlin’s club culture. “The decision will help us ensure that club culture is recognized as…

Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders said Wednesday he would not be the Netherlands’ next prime minister. Wilders’ Party for Freedom won the most votes in national elections last year, but he failed to persuade potential coalition support to get the top job.  “I can only become Prime Minister if all parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case,” Wilders wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Right-wing coalition on the cards Wilders, known for his radical anti-immigration, Islamophobic politics and staunch Euroskepticism, was in talks with the center-right People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, populist Farmer Citizen Movement, and centrist New Social…