Author: DW

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, the man tasked with modernizing the Bundeswehr, Germany’s armed forces, has been in office for a year. He’s the most popular minister in Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s highly unpopular government. But, shortly before the end of his first year on the job, plans for a major reform of Germany’s armed forces, known as the “Zeitenwende” (turning point), were scaled back — again. In the federal budget for 2024, the government will barely reach NATO’s  spending target. That’s been heavily criticized by the largest opposition party, the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU). NATO countries have committed themselves to spending…

Train drivers in Germany on Wednesday began their longest strike yet in an ongoing labor dispute with Deutsche Bahn (DB) that is set to impact thousands of passengers and could dent the economy with a loss of up to €1 billion ($1.1 billion). On Monday, the German Train Drivers’ Union (GDL) had called for a six-day strike. The planned industrial action will run from 2:00 a.m. local time (0100 GMT) Wednesday until 6 p.m. on Monday for passenger traffic. The strike for freight trains began a day earlier. German train strike begins, DB implements provisional timetable Deutsche Bahn confirmed on Wednesday morning…

This week, the EU will hold a second round of talks on a free trade agreement with Thailand, with Bangkok keen on negotiations being wrapped up by early 2025. Thailand’s economy, which has been languid for years, could be given a shot in the arm by the trade pact. The pact would also solidify the EU’s pivot to Southeast Asia, with Brussels already having secured trade deals with Vietnam and Singapore. Other agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines are currently under negotiation. The latest discussions between the EU and Thailand are likely to be tense. Both sides want to protect…

A terrorist who killed three people in a park in Reading described himself as a “boy soldier” who fought in the Libyan civil war, an inquest has been told.Khairi Saadallah stabbed to death three men who were meeting in Forbury Gardens, during a brief relaxation in lockdown rules in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.James Furlong, Joseph Ritchie-Bennett and David Wails were killed and three others injured during a 30-second rampage on 20 June 2020.Saadallah, who was later handed a whole life tariff, had viewed material on the September 11 attacks and was heard yelling “Allahu Akbar” [god is great]…

Jose Peseiro couldn’t stifle a chuckle. As Nigeria’s national team coach sat in the bowels of the venerable Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Abidjan on Monday evening he was clearly enjoying the post-match press conference. His team had just beaten Guinea-Bissau 1-0 in their final group stage game of the 34th Africa Cup of Nations. After a draw against Equatorial Guinea (1-1) and two wins against Ivory Coast (1-0) and now Guinea-Bissau, his team had eased into the last 16. Still, he wasn’t completely satisfied. “We wanted to go through on the first position of the table,” he said. “But that was not…

Google, Meta and other tech giants are making it more challenging to access independent media content in Belarus, exiled journalists have told the European Commission. By complying with restrictions Alexander Lukashenko’s government has imposed, these companies have “become tools for a totalitarian and authoritarian regime to put pressure on civil society instead of helping to promote independent media,” the exiled journalist Natalia Belikova told the Financial Times in January. “It is becoming increasingly clear that technology companies have enormous power — perhaps, in some cases, even more than those in political power,” Belarusian opposition leader Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya told DW in January on the sidelines of…

The European Union on Wednesday announced a number of measures it hopes will help keep sensitive technology and key infrastructure out of the hands of global rivals, notably China.   The proposed rules will require more rigorous screening of investments from abroad, tighter controls on exports and more restrictions on who can participate in researching key technologies. Facing “profound geopolitical turmoil and fast technological shifts” the EU has to reduce security risks from trade and investment, EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said in a statement. Although the plan does not mention any specific country, the initiatives come as the EU focuses on “de-risking” its economic relations with China,…

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called for greater “pressure” to be applied to both sides to find a negotiated solution to the ongoing conflict in Sudan. Setting off on a multi-day trip to Djibouti, Kenya and South Sudan, Baerbock said in a statement that she wanted to discuss ways to bring the warring Sudanese generals Burhan and Hemedti to the negotiating table “so that they do not drag the people of Sudan further into the abyss and destabilize the region further.” Since April 2023, Sudan has been gripped by a civil war that has pitted army chief and de…

A major monument dedicated to peace and the possibility of reunification between North Korea and South Korea appears to have been demolished under the orders of Kim Jong Un.Mr Kim recently vowed to launch new spy satellites, build military drones and boost his nuclear arsenal, saying US policy was making war inevitable. Last week, he described South Korea as a “primary foe” and said unification was no longer possible.Satellite imagery of Pyongyang on Tuesday showed the Arch of Reunification, which symbolised hopes for Korean reunification after a landmark inter-Korea summit in 2000, was no longer there, according to a report…

Skip next section Ukraine’s Kuleba says Taurus talks still ongoing with Germany01/24/2024January 24, 2024Ukraine’s Kuleba says Taurus talks still ongoing with Germany’Taurus for Ukraine’ reads one sign held by protesters in BerlinImage: Annette Riedl/dpa/picture allianceUkrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said he is still talking with the German government about obtaining German-made Taurus cruise missiles to aid in fighting off the Russian invasion. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has so far rejected supplying Taurus missiles to Ukraine, apparently fearing an escalation of the conflict if German missiles were used to attack Russian territory.  However, in an interview with news outlets Bild, Welt.tv and Politico, Kuleba…