Bild: Who’s going to pay for that? | Wer soll denn das bezahlen?
FAZ: CDU and SPD seek majority for new debt | Union und SPD suchen Mehrheit für neue Schulden
Funke: Berlin expects it to rain money – but still has to save | Berlin erwartet einen Geldregen – muss aber trotzdem sparen
Handelsblatt: Merz triggers interest rate jump | Merz löst Zinssprung aus
RND: The turning point comes right at the start: Friedrich Merz’s rise to the chancellorship | Am Anfang steht die Wende: Die Kanzlerwerdung von Friedrich Merz
SZ: Greens make Merz wait | Grüne lassen Merz warten
Tagesspiegel: Anger over debt package: Two-thirds majority uncertain | Ärger über Verschuldungs-Paket: Zweidrittelmehrheit ungewiss
taz: Cash shower at the start of Merz | Geldregen zum Merz-Anfang
Welt: Debt plans: AfD and the Left Party consider legal action | Schuldenpläne: AfD und Linke prüfen rechtliche Schritte
Bundestag to vote on planned financial package on March 17: The Council of Elders of the old Bundestag and the so-called “Pre-Council of Elders” of the newly elected parliament will discuss deadlines and agendas on Thursday. Next Thursday, the Bundestag is to discuss the investment package for defense and infrastructure that the CDU/CSU and SPD are seeking to implement; the vote is scheduled for March 17. The Bundesrat could then still give its consent before the newly elected Bundestag convenes. The CDU/CSU and SPD have agreed to relax the debt brake for defense spending and to provide 500 billion euros in credit-financed special funds for infrastructure. faz.net
SPD leader Lars Klingbeil draws red line on migration before continuation of exploratory talks: The SPD will not go along with any de facto border closures, Klingbeil said on ARD. “We cannot implement that nationally. And above all, it is unreasonable in European terms.” At a time when the answer to US President Donald Trump should be a strong Europe, it cannot be that the strongest country in Europe closes its borders. handelsblatt.com
Top representatives of the CDU/CSU and SPD meet with Chancellor Olaf Scholz: The exchange took place in view of Thursday’s special EU summit on the security situation in Europe, said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit. CDU leader Friedrich Merz, CSU state group leader Alexander Dobrindt and SPD leaders Lars Klingbeil and Saskia Esken took part in the hour-and-a-half-long discussions. Negotiators from the CDU/CSU and SPD also coordinated with Scholz on the agreement to make comprehensive investments in defense and infrastructure. zeit.de
Friedrich Merz meets NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte to discuss Europe’s defense capabilities: “Germany and Europe must now invest heavily in their own defense capabilities. That is the best protection for Europe’s security,” Merz wrote after the meeting on X. Rutte emphasized that Merz’s leadership would be ‘crucial’; NATO must invest more in defense, increase arms production and continue to support Ukraine. stern.de
French President Emmanuel Macron opens talks on nuclear umbrella for Europe: Russia is a “threat to France and Europe,” Macron said on Wednesday evening in a televised address to the nation. Therefore, he had opened a strategic debate on the protection of the European continent by the French nuclear force. However, the decision-making authority over France’s nuclear weapons remains in France’s hands. Macron also referred to Friedrich Merz, who, during the election campaign, had suggested talks with the European nuclear powers on nuclear sharing. rp-online.de, faz.net, spiegel.de
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sees positive developments in cooperation with the United States: Both countries have agreed to further talks to end Russia’s war of aggression. Zelenskyy said in his daily video address that he expects an appointment to be set in the coming week. Head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak wrote on Twitter that he had discussed the next steps towards a just and lasting peace in Ukraine with US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz; a meeting between US and Ukrainian government representatives is planned soon. faz.net, n-tv.de
US government confirms direct talks with militant Islamist Hamas: The White House spoke of ‘ongoing talks and discussions’ with Hamas, without commenting on their content. Israel was informed about the direct negotiations. “American lives are at stake,” said Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt when asked why the US was negotiating directly with the group for the first time, contrary to its long-standing policy. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the US had been informed of Israel’s position regarding direct talks with Hamas. spiegel.de, handelsblatt.com
Number of asylum appeals at German administrative courts has risen significantly: In 2024, the courts received more than 100,000 new cases, according to a survey by the German Judges‘ Newspaper of the relevant state ministries. In the previous year, there were just under 72,000 cases, and in 2022, around 62,000. The number also rose because the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees is now processing its pending asylum cases from previous years more quickly. In most federal states, processing times are still well above the target of a maximum of six months set by the Prime Ministers‘ Conference. tagesschau.de
Plane brings 132 Afghans to Germany: For the second time in two weeks, Afghans and their relatives have been brought to Berlin by charter plane. More than half of them were from the federal admission program for particularly vulnerable individuals. Among the requirements for entry were, among other things, a conclusive clarification of their identities and a comprehensive security check. 25 other people who were also supposed to be on the flight were not allowed to board the plane because the federal police had pointed out possible discrepancies in their documents. zeit.de, tagesschau.de
Director of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy Moritz Schularick warns against a defense boom based on old models: “The biggest danger is that we look too much at what used to be defense instead of what defense will be in the future,” he told Der Spiegel. Ukraine has shown that a 25-million-euro tank can be taken out by a 5,000-euro drone. The war of the future will be about autonomous weapons systems, based on networked drones controlled by artificial intelligence. The economist also does not consider manned fighter aircrafts to be sustainable. n-tv.de
Indications that Mannheim attacker had radical right-wing past: The Mannheim public prosecutor’s office and the Baden-Württemberg state criminal police office said there was still no indication that the crime was motivated by extremism or politics. According to the research portal Exif, the alleged perpetrator was part of the “Ring Bund” network at least in 2018; this group included neo-Nazis and people who reject the idea of a sovereign German state. Investigators believe that the 40-year-old suspect Alexander S. has had a mental illness for many years. faz.net, welt.de, tagesschau.de
More Germany News:
- Hamburg: SPD to explore coalition with the Greens on Friday. handelsblatt.com
- Berlin: In the Tempelhof-Schöneberg parliamentary constituency, the Greens remain in first place after a recount of votes from eleven polling stations. rbb24.de
- Schleswig-Holstein: New draft law for violence prevention using electronic monitoring. ndr.de
- Berlin: 77-year-old insults participants of a pro-Palestine demonstration with Nazi salutes and nationalist slogans. tagesspiegel.de
- North Rhine-Westphalia: Münster returns Nazi-looted art to Jewish heirs. spiegel.de
EU interior ministers agree on new Schengen entry system: The electronic entry system is to be introduced in stages. This is intended to more accurately record the entry and exit of third-country nationals. Biometric data for facial or fingerprint recognition are to replace the conventional stamp in passports. Consequently, data access should be accelerated. One aim is to combat cross-border crime and terrorism. The EU member states and the EU Parliament still have to approve the new rules. n-tv. de, de.euronews.com
EU Commission wants to attract skilled workers from abroad with improved conditions: A common visa strategy is to be proposed before the end of this year that will benefit those industries particularly hard-hit by the shortage of skilled workers. There are also plans to create a platform that European companies can use to find suitable applicants from third countries. EU countries are also to receive support from Brussels for education and training programs. According to the Federal Employment Agency, bottlenecks in Germany are particularly common in the catering, geriatric care, metal construction and electrical engineering sectors, as well as among bus, tram and truck drivers. n-tv.de
EU Commission provides 1.8 billion euros to support procurement of battery raw materials: In addition, carmakers are to be given more time to meet stricter carbon dioxide limits. Carmakers could then offset the CO2 emissions of their new cars from the current year against the values of the next two years. Furthermore, the commission wants to stimulate demand for electric cars. The plan is to set a mandatory electric share for company car fleets. spiegel. de, dw.com
No-confidence vote against Greece’s government over cover-up after 2023 train crash: The reason is the accusation of a cover-up after the serious train crash in northern Greece two years ago, in which 57 people died. The government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis had all traces at the scene of the accident removed a few days after the accident. This also obscured possible causes of the accident, according to the opposition. The motion of censure was announced by the Pasok party and the Syriza party. An investigation committee has already been set up. tagesschau.de
Turkey wants to build a wall on the border with Greece to prevent illegal crossings into the EU: The governor of the province of Edirne announced the construction of an initial 8.5-kilometre stretch of wall. The province borders the EU member states of Greece and Bulgaria. Further sections of the wall along the approximately 200-kilometre-long land border between Turkey and Greece are to follow at a later date. tagesspiegel.de
More than 14 million people in Syria depend on food aid: The massive cuts in US aid funds have further exacerbated the already tense situation, according to Welthungerhilfe; half of the funding for individual projects comes from US funds. Decades of rule by the Assad clan have left deep scars in Syrian society. Almost every family has relatives who have been victims of arbitrary arrests. Many of those arrested have not returned. Women often have to provide for their families alone.
China plans to increase defense spending by 7.2 percent: The defense budget for this year will be around 230 billion euros, announced Prime Minister Li Qiang at the annual meeting of the National People’s Congress in Beijing. In absolute numbers, it is the second largest in the world. In his speech, Li Qiang reaffirmed the claim to Taiwan. Beijing would take decisive action against separatist activities aimed at independence. zdf.de, faz.net
More news:
- Italy: Government questions mega-deal with Elon Musk over doubts about reliability. t-online.de
- Portugal: Prime Minister Luis Montenegro announces vote of confidence; new elections possible. handelsblatt.com
- Great Britain: Digital application for entry permits from European countries begins. zeit.de
- Romania: Two Russian diplomats expelled after interfering in elections. n-tv.de
- Denmark: Greenland rejects Donald Trump’s latest proposal. n-tv.de
- Austria: ORF license fee is frozen. faz.net
- Switzerland: Cash is to be enshrined in the federal constitution. nzz.ch
- Lesotho: Landlocked country reacts with incomprehension to derogatory remarks by US President Donald Trump. rnd.de
- Iran: New wave of arrests as authorities panic over protests. dw.com
- Pakistan: Man suspected of masterminding suicide bombing that killed 13 US soldiers at Kabul airport arrested. n-tv.de
Canada files complaint with WTO over US tariffs: Canada’s WTO ambassador Nadia Theodore said the US decision leaves her country no other choice; she has requested a dispute settlement procedure. The US had previously made good on its threat and imposed tariffs on imports from neighboring Canada and Mexico. China, on whose deliveries the US also levies higher tariffs, also filed a complaint. However, the dispute settlement mechanism at the World Trade Organization has been blocked for years because the US has refused to fill vacant judge positions. t-online.de
More news:
- Pharmaceutical company Lilly wants to produce weight-loss injection in Alzey. swr.de
- Moderna wins patent dispute against Biontech and Pfizer. n-tv.de
- Adidas is cutting up to 500 jobs at its headquarters in Herzogenaurach. spiegel.de
- Boost for German economy: Arms industry takes on former automotive industry employees. n-tv.de
- Survey: Young people have become more skeptical of AI this year. heise.de
- Survey by climate think tank: 36 companies are responsible for half of the world’s CO₂ emissions spiegel.de
- Despite trade war: China’s economy set to grow around 5 percent manager-magazin.de
- IW study: Permanent crisis costs German economy 735 billion euros in the last five years sueddeutsche.de
- “Genuine people’s car” ID. Every1: VW presents small, affordable electric car n-tv.de
Associations criticize threat to independent journalism in Europe: An evaluation of press freedom in 2024 states that disinformation – some of it generated by artificial intelligence – threatens the formation of public opinion. State propaganda is increasingly being used to undermine the work of independent journalists. In Russia’s war against Ukraine, they were also subjected to physical attacks and restrictions last year. Various international journalists‘ associations were involved in the evaluation of press freedom. The report praises the fact that Germany has taken measures to protect reporters at demonstrations. tagesschau.de
More news:
- P7S1 removes ARD and ZDF media libraries from Joyn. dwdl.de
- Ex-Washington Post editor-in-chief Martin Barron on the polarized US media landscape: “It’s going to get a lot worse” horizont.net
- Freedom of the press in Europe: Significantly more attacks on journalists tagesschau.de
- All stolen? Criticism of Netflix series by Duchess Meghan continues web.de
- Event business: Heise invites you to “Women in Tech” new-business.de
- Painting by Bernhard Pankok: Münster returns Nazi-looted art to Jewish heirs spiegel.de
- Program released: This year’s Ruhrfestspiele in Recklinghausen is themed “Zweifel und Zusammenhalt” (Doubt and Cohesion) wdr.de
- Drake demands access to e-mails in the diss track process promiflash.de
- Green Day: Full broadside against JD Vance – The band makes it a rule to incorporate US politicians into their lyrics. musikexpress.de
- Lisa Müller talks about Thomas Müller’s rock bottom gala.de
- Lawyers for Blatter and Platini demand another acquittal web.de
- Specific offer submitted: PSG want Joshua Kimmich n-tv.de
- Former star coach: Klopp receives fair play award for his farewell at Liverpool FC spiegel.de
- World champion in his own indoor league – Mini-comeback of the world champion: Toni Kroos is kicking a ball again after all sportbuzzer.de
- NBA star LeBron James reaches historic milestone: Has become the first basketball player in history to score 50,000 points in the NBA faz.net
- Handball players ahead of home World Cup: Emily Bölk becomes surprise candidate for elimination sportschau.de
- Nordic Ski World Championships: Hennig and Gimmler miss out on World Cup medal sportschau.de
- Nordic Ski World Championships: 13th World Championship gold medal in cross-country skiing – Kläbo equals Northug record sportschau.de
Tesla drivers mask their electric cars: This is how they creatively protect their vehicles from vandalism – they simply pass off their Tesla as a different vehicle. t3n.de