On December 8th 2021, Olaf Scholz (SPD) was officially sworn in as Chancellor of Germany, marking the end of Angela Merkel’s 16 years in office – and the opening chapter for the incoming traffic light coalition. Together with the Greens and the liberal Free Democrats (FDP), the centre-left leaning Social Democrats had set out an ambitious programme for all areas of public life. It included pledges to overhaul the welfare system, transform Germany’s energy and transport sector, make affordable housing more widely available, and create a much friendlier immigration and nationality law. READ ALSO ..read more

The suspected plotters are thought to be supporters of the “Citizens of the Reich” (Reichsbuerger), an ideological movement that encompasses far-right extremists, conspiracy theorists and gun enthusiasts. “We will carefully examine which security provisions for the Bundestag we need to adjust,” Katrin Goering-Eckardt of the Green party told the Funke media group. Birgit Malsack-Winkemann, a Berlin judge and former MP for the far-right AfD party, who served in parliament between 2017 and 2021, was among those arrested in nationwide raids by police on Wednesday. READ ALSO: ‘Not harmless nutcases ..read more

Using so-called cell broadcast technology for the first time, all cell phone users in Germany with a German phone number were to receive a blaring emergency notification for the second Warntag (warning day). This was to test how well they would be alerted to an actual urgent situation, such as flash flooding or a blackout. The technology sends out alerts regardless of the phone provider or if a person is signed up for them. Even if their phone is switched to silent mode, phone users receive a loud buzzing notification that’s hard to ignore. READ ALSO: All cell phone users in Germany to be part ..read more

Germany has now identified 54 suspects and conducted more than 150 searches, Federal Criminal Office (BKA) President Holger Münch told public broadcaster ARD on Thursday. The current suspects include an eccentric aristocrat known for his outspoken conspiracy theories, as well as former militia and an Alternative for Germany (AfD) member who until recently sat in German parliament. READ ALSO: Who was involved in the alleged plot to ‘overthrow German democracy’? Weapons – including crossbows and rifles – were also found at around 50 locations, Münch said, adding that there would likely be more s ..read more

Behind the recently renovated concrete walls, the German startup Demecan has been growing marijuana in accordance with the law for the past year. The company is one of only a handful in Germany to have a license for the production of this “green gold”, which has been legal in Germany for medicinal use since 2017. But the budding industry is eyeing a bigger prize: Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government plans to legalise the drug for recreational use as soon as 2024, which would leave it with one of the most liberal cannabis policies in Europe. Banner ad READ ALSO: Germany agrees on plan to ..read more

Floods are sweeping through a region, a widespread power outage has occurred or a cyber attack hits large swathes of the country – these are some of the reasons why Germany might need to use its disaster warning systems in the future. On Thursday at 11 am, both federal and state governments will be testing these system for 45 minutes in order to be better prepared in case of a catastrophe. Banner ad For the first time, the Bundesrepublik will be sending out a warning to all cell phone users using a “cell broadcast”, which will they receive without having to be signed onto a particular ap ..read more

The offices accorded to the former leader are in view of the Russian embassy, where since the Ukraine invasion in February Berliners regularly leave signs and flowers protesting the war. Long called the world’s most powerful woman, Merkel these days has pulled back from the spotlight, working on her memoirs and enjoying the occasional television series, such as “The Crown”, which tells the story of Queen Elizabeth II’s turbulent decades on the throne. But in many quarters the broad German support she once enjoyed as a staunch defender of Western liberal values has curdled. “One year on, the wo ..read more

The state funding would support companies in transitioning towards cleaner production and the use of hydrogen, encouraging the development of a marketable “green industry”. “With the climate protection contracts, we are opening a new chapter, with Germany taking on a pioneering role,” Habeck told Germany’s Funke Media Group newspapers, which had sight of the draft directive on the agreements Climate-friendly production processes are often so costly that companies cannot afford to switch to them. Manual widget for ML (class=”ml-manual-widget-container”) Habeck wants to compensate large companie ..read more

Berlin announced in March it would buy 35 of the warplanes made by Lockheed Martin to replace its ageing Tornado fleet, in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But the defence ministry has raised concerns about “delays and additional costs” in the nearly 10 billion euro ($10.5 billion) purchase, according to a classified letter to parliament’s budget committee. Risk factors range from upgrading work needed at air fields that will host the F-35s, to security requirements, and potential problems with approval for flight operations in Germany, it said. Manual widget for ML (class=”ml-manual ..read more

The ex-finance minister took office promising continuity with the era of Angela Merkel, who ended her 16 years as chancellor a widely respected figure. But Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has forced him to rip up Germany’s post-war axioms and chart out new economic, defence and geopolitical directions for the country that prizes — and is valued for — its stability and predictability. “We never before had a government faced with such a dramatically worsening situation, when it came to foreign and security policy, but also of course energy policy,” political scientist Ursula Muench told AFP. Manual ..read more