Bild: When am I rich, when am I poor? / Wann bin ich reich, wann bin ich arm?
FAZ: Trump considers sanctions against Russia’s partners / Trump erwägt Sanktionen gegen Russlands Partner
Funke: These are Berlin’s most popular high schools and secondary schools / Das sind Berlins beliebteste Gymnasien und Sekundarschulen
Handelsblatt: The Bomb Boom / Der Bomben-Boom
RND: Price increases of up to 38 percent: Are school supplies too expensive? / Preissteigerung um bis zu 38 Prozent: Sind Schulmaterialien zu teuer?
SZ: „Stay with us!“ / „Bleib bei uns!“
Tagesspiegel: Dilapidated rail network: Renovation delayed until 2036 / Marodes Bahnnetz: Sanierung verzögert sich bis 2036
taz: Putin sends greetings to the reconstruction conference / Putin grüßt die Wiederaufbaukonferenz
Welt: Dobrindt praises success in fight against illegal migration / Dobrindt preist Erfolg im Kampf gegen illegale Migration
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt sees a „turnaround in migration“: He wants to continue on the current path, he said in the Bundestag. „We are sending the right signals to the world.“ In June, there were 7,000 asylum applications – 60 percent fewer than the previous year. He referred to the government’s national measures, including rejections at the borders. People facing deportation, detention, or custody pending deportation should no longer be entitled to a state-funded lawyer to support them in asserting their rights, Dobrindt explained. welt.de, zeit.de
Research Minister Dorothee Bär aims to focus on space travel and future technologies. Her ministry primarily plans to promote emerging technologies, including quantum technology and artificial intelligence. For innovations and future strategies, €8.2 billion is scheduled for next year, slightly more than this year. The largest single item in the research ministry is student support (BAföG), at over €2 billion.
Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig calls for respect for judges and their decisions: The law must be respected not only when it is easy to follow or aligns with public sentiment, she said in her speech on the ministry’s budget. Decisions must always be respected unconditionally by citizens, as well as by state institutions and their members.
Digital Minister Karsten Wildberger wants to present concrete modernization proposals later this year: The „modernization agenda of the federal administration“ is currently being developed in his ministry, Wildberger explained. The goal is to offer more government services digitally and to improve the IT infrastructure. As a key project, Wildberger named the introduction of a „digital wallet“ in which citizens can store IDs and documents digitally. He emphasized that the new ministry’s budget is currently being coordinated with the Chancellery and other departments, and implementation has already begun.
Health Minister Nina Warken calls for more speed in reforms to nursing care and health insurance contributions: She wants to bring two draft laws to the cabinet this summer to secure skilled labor in nursing. Planned measures include expanding the powers of nursing staff and creating a nationwide standardized training for nursing assistants. On stabilizing health insurance contributions, Warken is pushing for faster results and criticizes the timetable set in the coalition agreement, running until 2027, as too slow. She demands concrete proposals much earlier.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz announces further military aid for Kyiv: Germany will purchase Patriot air defense systems from the U.S. Merz emphasized that Germany firmly stands by Kyiv’s side. He said Germany’s future is closely tied to Ukraine. Merz appealed to U.S. President Donald Trump not to abandon Europe. During the international reconstruction conference in Rome, Merz met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to Zelenskyy, the talks also covered potential cooperation in the defense sector, such as the production of interceptor drones. faz.net, handelsblatt.com, n-tv.de
Ipsos Sunday poll: CDU/CSU 26 percent (-1), AfD 24 percent (+1), SPD 15 percent (-1), Greens 12 percent (+1), Left Party 12 percent (+1), BSW 4 percent, FDP 3 percent, Others 4 percent (changes compared to previous month). ipsos.com
The government wants to define safe countries of origin by decree and expand the list: A draft law by CDU, CSU, and SPD proposes that parts of the list of safe countries of origin for refugees be determined in the future by legal decree. The aim is to speed up procedures and return people more quickly to the listed countries. Until now, the Bundestag and Bundesrat have decided on the list. Efforts to expand the list have repeatedly failed recently.
- Ex-BND chief August Hanning speaks with former Afghan President Hamid Karzai about deportations: Hanning said that the idea of establishing a German-administered zone for deported Afghans in Afghanistan was discussed. Karzai has close ties to the Taliban. Hanning emphasized that the meeting was not an official negotiation on behalf of the German government.
- SPD outraged by talks with Afghanistan: „There can be no dialogue with the Taliban.“ tagesspiegel.de
- Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul opposes establishing diplomatic relations with the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan: „There will be no step beyond the current state,“ he said. Germany maintains only technical contacts with the Taliban. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt recently advocated for direct diplomatic talks with the Taliban. welt.de
Inquiry commission to draw lessons from the COVID crisis: The commission is to review the pandemic, its causes, course, and effects, gather necessary data and facts, and make recommendations for future pandemic responses. COVID had profound effects on education, family life, self-employed workers, employees, employers, and cultural life. The Greens are calling for a special focus on families and children. The commission will include 14 Bundestag members and 14 experts. CDU MP Franziska Hoppermann will chair the commission. zdfheute.de, welt.de, faz.net
Abuse Commissioner Kerstin Claus calls for stricter rules on sex with minors: While the legal situation is clear for children up to age 13, from age 14 they can usually decide for themselves, Claus told Welt. To ensure true consent, the current „No means no“ rule is insufficient. She advocates for a „Yes means yes“ principle, at least for minors. She also called for tougher laws on cyber-grooming—adults covertly contacting minors online with sexual intent. sueddeutsche.de
Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig supports co-motherhood for lesbian couples: Both women would be registered as mothers at birth if they have a child together. Currently, the non-biological mother must adopt the child to become a legal parent. Hubig called the process „very burdensome“ and said it puts strain on families. tagesspiegel.de
More headlines:
- German Islam policy under review by new government. dw.com
- Construction and safety deficiencies at nearly a third of German embassies. rnd.de
- Government does not know how many benefit from the tax bonus on overtime. sueddeutsche.de
- No funds despite special budget: Autobahn GmbH halts 2025 tenders immediately. welt.de
- Bundestag to decide on three Constitutional Court judge positions. zeit.de
AfD members in Rhineland-Palatinate may be barred from public service: Interior Minister Michael Ebling announced stricter hiring rules for the civil service. Loyalty to the constitution is not optional, he said; it is a fundamental duty of every public servant. AfD state vice-chair and Bundestag MP Sebastian Münzenmaier condemned the move, calling it an attack on the liberal democratic order. tagesschau.de
More regional news from Germany:
- Berlin: Interior Senator Iris Spranger says security concerns over digital naturalization have been resolved. rbb24.de
- Brandenburg: Kilometers-long traffic jams due to Polish border controls. welt.de
- Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: CDU MP Thomas Diener and FDP’s Sandy van Baal attend AfD summer party. rnd.de
- North Rhine-Westphalia: AfD may be excluded from the local election in Düsseldorf. wdr.de
- Saxony-Anhalt: Historic low water level in Elbe River near Magdeburg recorded. mdr.de
- Saxony-Anhalt: Pro-Russian hackers attack state portal. sueddeutsche.de
Israel ready to end fighting if Hamas is disarmed: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared his willingness to negotiate a permanent ceasefire in the event of a truce. The condition for a lasting end to the war is the complete disarmament of the radical Islamist Hamas. „Hamas must lay down its weapons, Gaza must be demilitarized, Hamas must no longer possess military capabilities or exercise governmental authority,“ said Netanyahu, adding: „If this can be achieved through negotiations, all the better. Otherwise, we will achieve it by other means – through the strength of our heroic army.“ swissinfo.ch, n-tv.de
Many dead in Israeli airstrikes: Since Thursday morning, Israel’s military has launched attacks in various areas of the embattled coastal strip. The Hamas-controlled civil protection authority accused the Israeli air force of firing on a group of people outside a medical aid center. Many children and women were reportedly killed. The Israeli military stated that its missile strike targeted Hamas fighters.
Motion of no confidence against EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen fails: In the vote in Strasbourg, 175 MEPs voted in favor, 360 against, and 18 abstained. A successful no-confidence vote would have required at least 360 votes. The motion was submitted by right-wing Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea, who justified it in part by alleging interference in Romania’s presidential election and von der Leyen’s non-transparent SMS contact with the head of U.S. pharmaceutical company Pfizer during the COVID-19 pandemic. tagesschau.de, spiegel.de
European nuclear powers Britain and France want to coordinate nuclear deterrence: London and Paris want to present their deterrence potential more jointly. This was agreed ahead of a bilateral government summit led by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron in London. For the first time, a declaration states that while both countries’ nuclear weapons remain independent, they can be coordinated. This was announced by the British Ministry of Defence. handelsblatt.com, spiegel.de
More News:
- EU border crossings are declining according to border agency Frontex. tagesschau.de
- Countdown to customs dispute? EU gives U.S. President Donald Trump deadline until July 14. n-tv.de
- Irish data protection authority launches new investigation against TikTok. spiegel.de
- EU wants to target Elon Musk’s chatbot Grok after Hitler glorification. spiegel.de
- EU presents controversial AI guidelines for companies. handelsblatt.com
- EU reportedly considering flexible price cap for Russian oil. handelsblatt.com
- European Court of Justice opinion: EU countries may support the press over social media. stern.de
Britain and France want to stop migration across the English Channel: With a tougher approach, they want to show people that attempting to cross the Channel is futile, said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after the Franco-British government summit in London. The agreement will allow Britain to return migrants who crossed the Channel back to France. For each person returned, the UK will admit another migrant legally. welt.de, derstandard.at, zeit.de, spiegel.de
Turkish judiciary continues action against largest opposition party CHP: On Thursday, police detained a district mayor of Istanbul and other suspects. On Wednesday, the mayor of the major city Adana was removed from office, as was another district mayor of Istanbul. A government-critical television station was also shut down for ten days. derstandard.de, zeit.de
High UN representative for Bosnia-Herzegovina Christian Schmidt still sees conflict: On the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, Schmidt pointed to the unhealed wounds of war crimes. „People are still directly affected,“ he told RBB; the conflict is far from resolved. This is evident, among other things, in the fact that no official representatives of the Bosnian Serb Republic (Republika Srpska) are expected at Friday’s memorial event.
– stern.de
More News:
- Bulgaria: Euro accession could lead to next Greece scenario, economists warn. businessinsider.de
- Greece: Government relocates refugees from Crete to the mainland. deutschlandfunk.de
- Switzerland: Low birth rate threatens prosperity. nau.ch
- Luxembourg: Government opens economy to foreign defense companies. wort.lu
- Sweden: Son of Migration Minister Johan Forssell (Conservatives) had ties to far-right groups. derstandard.at
- Turkey: PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan reiterates call for peace. web.de
- Iran: Franco-German tourist arrested during cycling trip. tagesspiegel.de
- Saudi Arabia: Over 100 foreigners executed this year already. derstandard.at
Deutsche Bahn wants to extend general renovation until 2036: The modernization of more than 40 busy lines in urgent need of renovation will thus take at least five years longer than originally planned. The final decision will be made in the coming weeks after consultations with the Ministry of Transport. The industry has responded positively to the new schedule. The Association of Freight Railways had feared excessive demands on planning and construction as well as unreasonable restrictions on ongoing traffic. heise.de
Impetus for economic change: As part of the “Breaking Business as Usual” conference, the Bertelsmann Foundation has published a catalog of innovations from Voices of Economic Transformation. The publication brings together 50 concrete proposals for transforming the economy and society – from the introduction of an AI Advisory Council as a political sounding board to resilience stress tests for systemically important actors. Other ideas, such as a digital resource register for the circular economy and innovation citizens‘ councils, aim to promote sustainable business models and new forms of participation. pub.bertelsmann-stiftung.de
- “No coincidence”: China to redirect more US exports to Germany n-tv.deSupply chain law: Sustainability – yes, please! faz.net
- Migration and schools: An unfortunate upper limit t-online.de
- Deutsche Bahn announces further delays in its general renovation – extended by another year – until 2036. heise.de
- New drivers: Accompanied driving for 17-year-olds reduces accident risk spiegel.de
- Auto industry: ZF’s flagship customer comes from China handelsblatt.com
- Due to hostility toward democracy: Media regulator blocks Islamist website kalifat.com spiegel.de
- Warning app: NINA now also sends police reports heise.de
More from Business, Tech and Science:
- Loss of US funding: UN fears setback in fight against AIDS spiegel.de
- Schutz für die Kleinsten: Switzerland approves world’s first malaria drug for infants rnd.de
- Mass tourism: Where the tourist crowds are heaviest – particularly unbalanced in the Greek region with islands such as Santorini, Mykonos, and Rhodes spiegel.de
- Millions of tons of nanoplastics discovered in the oceans spektrum.de
- Orbit and moon: plans to build huge structures directly in space golem.de
- The challenge of climate change: Number of heat-related deaths among seniors rising sharply, according to study ksta.de
- Company: Axel Springer dissolves ESG department table.media/esg
- German diversity of opinion under pressure from platforms and AI adzine.de
- Lack of protection for personal rights: Press Council reprimands Bild & Co. kress.de
- RTL Germany overtakes ARD and ZDF in quote ranking dwdl.de
- The most quoted media in the first half of the year: Berliner Zeitung storms into the top 10 regional newspapers kress.de
- UNESCO decides: These four German castles are now World Heritage Sites – Neuschwanstein Castle, Linderhof Castle, the Royal Palace on Schachen and Herrenchiemsee New Palace rnd.de
- Börsenverein points to dwindling number of bookstores wdr.de
- The Jewish-German association “Werteinitiative” is calling for the cancellation of two comeback concerts by singer Xavier Naidoo. wdr.de
More from Culture, Media and People
- Ed Sheeran sells self-painted pictures for charity suedostschweiz.ch
- Billie Eilish on Israel’s plans: “Terrible!” musikexpress.de
- Kelly Clarkson is emotionally and physically overwhelmed promiflash.de
- Surprise in Denmark: Queen Margrethe unexpectedly takes over the reign – King Frederik is on a trip abroad, Christian apparently had to cancel at short notice web.de
- Roland Kaiser: He only found out about his biological mother when he was 15 t-online.de
TasteIt is a unique social networking app that transforms how people connect, using food as the starting point for meaningful interactions. In a world where loneliness is on the rise, TasteIt helps food lovers meet, share, and explore local gastronomy—whether by discovering new dishes or joining dining events with others who share their tastes.
Dubbed the “anti-dating app,” TasteIt focuses on building real connections through flavor, people, and place. Users can swipe through local food options, find exclusive deals, and plan meals together, making every dining experience social, fun, and supportive of local restaurants.
- The German Mini Olympics and how to handle millions – World University Games sueddeutsche.de
- Verdict in the Semenya case: “The fight will never end” – The European Court of Human Rights rules that Switzerland violated the rights of runner Caster Semenya. However, testosterone rules in athletics remain unchanged. faz.net
- European Championship duel for group victory: Everything you need to know about the match between Germany and Sweden sportschau.de
- Further reforms planned: The Bundesliga emancipates itself from the national team sportschau.de
- After a close semifinal: Sabalenka’s Wimbledon curse continues – Anisimova in the final sportschau.de
- Tour de France, 6. Etappe: Healy wins after 42 km solo ride – van der Poel back in yellow sportschau.de
- Under a neutral flag: Russian swimmers return to the World Championships in Singapore sportschau.de
German is the most widely taught third language in the world, after English and French. Globally, millions of students learn German as a foreign language, not only because of Germany’s economic influence but also due to its role in science, engineering, philosophy, classical music, and literature. Institutions like the Goethe-Institut support German language education worldwide, and many universities and scholarship programs promote German as a key academic language. Its popularity is also linked to Germany’s reputation for high-quality higher education and its status as a leading destination for international students.