Author: DW

It is exactly what the Kremlin did not want – for tens of thousands of people to gather in Moscow to pay their respects to Alexei Navalny.But thanks to the resilience and determination of his family not to allow the authorities to take, at the very least, this final goodbye from them, the ceremony has been allowed to take place. As his body was carried into the church, people clapped and chanted “Navalny” and “Alexei”. Some were in tears.Ukraine-Russia war latest updatesPeople crowded onto the steps of nearby supermarkets and shopping complexes. They knew they would not make it into…

The leaders of Ukraine and the Netherlands signed a security guarantee deal in the northeastern Ukrainian frontline city of Kharkiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter, that the document includes €2 billion ($2.16 billion) in military aid from the Netherlands this year, as well as further defense assistance over the next ten years. “I am grateful to Prime Minister Rutte for this agreement, which will strengthen the protection of Ukraine, including the city of Kharkiv, where we met today,” Zelenskyy said. “According to the document, the Netherlands also supports Ukraine’s future membership in the EU and NATO,” he added. Now, Ukraine has…

“In 1994, I was 51 years old, and I voted for the first time,” said John Kani, a prominent South African actor, as he told DW about his experience voting in the country’s first post-apartheid election. “I was angry because it had taken so long to do something so simple as to put an X against the name of the party that I thought would deliver my freedom.” Thirty years later, ahead of elections scheduled for May 29, the South African theater pioneer is angry again. While he applauds certain things that have been achieved by the ruling African National…

Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang is an unshakable optimist. When he talks about the economy, he often uses weather metaphors as a signal that — eventually — everything will be alright. Addressing German businesspeople last summer in Berlin, he promised them “a rainbow” amid global economic downturn. “When it rains hard, it gets muddy. But we must not bow our heads,” Li said. “Keep your chin up! When the time comes, we will surely see a rainbow. The economy has a natural cycle, in China as well.” And Li seems determined to reboot the world’s second-largest economy and make it fair,…

Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, Russia has almost continually been waging — or at least provoking — wars against its neighbors. The first of these conflicts came just over two months after the collapse of the Soviet empire, namely in early March 1992 in the small former Soviet republic of Moldova. Two years previously, pro-Moscow separatists in Transnistria, a thin strip of land on the eastern bank of the Dniester River in eastern Moldova, proclaimed a republic under the pretext of protecting Russians and the Russian language. To this day, it hasn’t been recognized by…

Faltering Bayern Munich have confirmed in a statement that former Borussia Mönchengladbach and RB Leipzig sporting director Max Eberl will take over as the board member for sport in a boardroom shakeup. He has signed on until June 2027. Media reports say Bayern are set to pay a compensation fee of €4.5 million to Leipzig, where he remained under contract despite being relieved of his duties last September. In hindsight, it’s a move that seems to have been coming for quite some time. “I spent my entire childhood and youth at FC Bayern and in Munich, so it’s something special for me to return in…

China may face a more challenging task in achieving its economic growth target this year as the country’s annual meetings in Beijing get underway on Monday. The “two sessions” include the gathering of China’s legislative body — the National People’s Congress (NPC) — and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which is an advisory body. The events led by Chinese President Xi Jinping usually deliver major policy announcements including the gross domestic growth (GDP) target for the year. Leading up to this year’s two sessions, many analysts have expected the world’s second largest economy to set the goal at 5%…

Researchers studying the genetic makeup of various types of anacondas in the Amazon rainforest over a period spanning 20 years have discovered that there are two genetically distinct types of green anaconda — a species previously categorized as a single animal.  The findings were published in the February edition of the scientific journal Diversity, and Australian biology professor Brian G. Fry also wrote about the findings for independent news site The Conversation.  “What we were there to do was use the anacondas as an indicator species for what kind of damage is being done by the oil spills that are plaguing…

Thousands of people have gathered in Moscow for Alexei Navalny’s funeral despite the risk of arrest – with crowds clapping and chanting his name as his body was being carried inside the church.The funeral of the prominent Vladimir Putin critic, whose death was announced on 16 February, is being held under heavy police presence. Hundreds waited for hours to enter the Soothe My Sorrows church and for the release of Mr Navalny’s body from the morgue where it was being held was briefly delayed.Navalny’s funeral – follow latest updates Image: People gather near the Soothe My Sorrows church where funeral…

If Bundesliga executives thought the tennis ball protests which have dominated the league for weeks would end after an investor deal collapsed, they suddenly had to think again. Eintracht Frankfurt fans decided last weekend to send down a volley of tennis balls, plastic balls and a toy pig against Wolfsburg in a new protest against their opponents being backed by car giant Volkswagen. The question now is whether match interruptions will continue this weekend and on-and-off in German football as supporter groups flex their muscles, having claimed victory in the battle with the Bundesliga over an external investor. The general feeling among…