PENSION DEBATE

Chancellor Friedrich Merz firmly rejects speculation about a possible end to the black-red coalition due to the pension package dispute: At the *Süddeutsche Zeitung* economic summit, Merz reaffirmed that the alliance with the SPD will still exist in a year. Merz explicitly ruled out a minority government by the Union; media had previously reported that such a scenario was already being discussed within Union circles. Background: internal disagreements over the planned pension reforms.
sueddeutsche.de, handelsblatt.com, zdfheute.de

• Chancellor Friedrich Merz is pushing for a swift agreement on the pension package by the end of the year so the planned „active pension“ can start in early 2026. He announced further talks in the coming days.
• Family Minister Karin Prien calls for postponing the vote on the pension package. She argues for fair solutions in parliament and stresses the need to focus more on intergenerational issues.
• CSU parliamentary secretary Reinhard Brandl rejects postponing the Bundestag vote on the pension package. He is counting on a compromise within the coalition, he told DLF, and warns against turning the decision into a risk for the governing alliance.
• Labour Minister Bas reaffirms the goal of continuing to link pensions to wage developments and rejects calls to tie them to inflation. The SPD wants to secure the pension level beyond 2031.
• Young Union politicians continue to insist on changes to the draft law. Young Group chairman Pascal Reddig told *Stern* that nothing had changed: they still consider the package in its current form unacceptable.
• The Left Party is considering supporting the coalition’s pension package. However, party leader Ines Schwerdtner made clear that a „yes“ is only possible if the reform is not watered down. n-tv.de
• The Greens announce they will reject the pension package. While they share the goal of a stable pension level, they criticise the lack of structural reforms and insufficient consideration for the younger generation.

GAZA

UN Security Council approves international stabilization force for Gaza: 13 members in New York voted in favor of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan; Russia and China abstained. The resolution provides for monitoring the ceasefire and a political transitional administration in Gaza. Several Arab states signaled willingness to send soldiers but demand a mandate based on the resolution. Hamas meanwhile declared it would not disarm and considers international troops a party to the conflict. faz.net, zdfheute.de, n-tv.de

• Germany lifts restrictions on arms exports to Israel after about three and a half months. The government cites the stable ceasefire between Israel and Hamas; exports will once again be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar welcomed the move and urged other states to follow.
• Despite the ceasefire that has been in place for weeks, Israel’s army says it has killed two Palestinians in Gaza. The military stated they had crossed border markers and placed suspicious objects near Israeli positions; the remaining suspects fled.
• In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces sharp criticism over his plans for an investigative commission into the Hamas attacks of October 2023. Opposition leader Yair Lapid and civil society groups accuse him of preventing an independent inquiry by appointing the commission himself.
• In the West Bank, Israeli settlers set fire to houses and cars belonging to Palestinian residents in a village. This followed clashes with security forces while settlers were defending an unauthorized outpost on a nearby hill.

UKRAINE

Ukraine plans to buy up to 100 Rafale fighter jets: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed in Paris on deeper security cooperation, including radar systems, drones, and the SAMP/T air-defense system. Zelensky stressed the agreement strengthens Ukraine’s defense capability against Russia. Macron reaffirmed French support for Kyiv and called for further EU aid as well as anti-corruption reforms. In late October, Ukraine signed a similar declaration with Sweden on a possible purchase of Gripen jets. tagesschau.de

• Kyiv is short more than 135 billion: EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen moves Russian funds for Ukraine toward the finish line.
• The Kremlin sharply rejects statements by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius about possible Russian action against a NATO country. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow does not seek confrontation with the alliance and criticized the comments as war-promoting rhetoric by European politicians.
• US sanctions on the Russian oil industry have already led to a decline in state revenues in Russia, according to the US Treasury. Measures against Rosneft and Lukoil are also intended to reduce export volumes long-term and limit Moscow’s ability to finance the war.
• US President Donald Trump is open to new Russia sanctions currently being prepared in Congress. The measures would target companies doing business with Russia; Trump is also considering extending them to Iran.
• According to state Russian media, Russian troops are now present in six African states, including Mali, Niger, and Libya. Moscow says the deployment supports African governments in fighting jihadists but also uses the presence to expand its geopolitical influence westward.