SPIEGEL ONLINE
- May 18, 2012
Germany may be Europe's driving force in the euro crisis, but a prominent US think tank has accused the country of shirking its defense duties. In a report released ahead of the NATO summit in Chicago, a group of experts criticizes Germany for threatening the future of the whole alliance through its weakness. By Gregor Peter Schmitz in Washington more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- May 04, 2012
Germany's diplomats are rapidly losing influence amid the debt crisis as Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle's popularity dwindles and the Chancellery takes over European policy. But the Foreign Ministry is working on a plan to grab back power. By Ralf Neukirch more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- May 02, 2012
German television stations and newspapers have been reporting extensively on human rights abuses in Azerbaijan ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest there. Now Baku has accused "certain circles" in Germany of orchestrating a media campaign of slander and deceit against the country. more... [ Forum ]
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- April 30, 2012
After years of pragmatic foreign policy, Chancellor Angela Merkel is suddenly putting human rights on center stage in her dealings with Ukraine. The country's handling of former opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko has Berlin up in arms. And Merkel is hoping to score an easy political victory. By Konstantin von Hammerstein, Christian Neef and Ralf Neukirch more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- April 27, 2012
Germany is putting increasing pressure on the Ukrainian government over its treatment of jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, whose home city of Dnipropetrovsk was shaken by a series of explosions on Friday. German commentators applaud Berlin's hard line on the case. more... [ Forum ]
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- March 05, 2012
Berlin has reacted with disgust to an insult by the Belarus president about Germany's homosexual foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle. In response to criticism of his country's human rights record, Alexander Lukashenko said it is "better to be a dictator than gay." Westerwelle said the remark "speaks for itself." more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- February 13, 2012
In a SPIEGEL interview, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, 50, discusses the "repulsive" violence in Syria, his concerns about Germany's standing in Europe as a result of the euro crisis and his disatisfaction with the recent political impasse in Greece. more... [ Forum ]
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- February 07, 2012
The foundations affiliated with Germany's major political parties are playing an important role in the upheavals in the Middle East, attracting the attention of the region's rulers -- and making them the targets of harassment. The organizations' troubles are by no means limited to Egypt, where the offices of one German organization were recently searched. By SPIEGEL Staff more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- February 02, 2012
German Chancellor Angela Merkel needs help -- and in China this week, she has not been afraid to ask for it. She would like to see Beijing exert more pressure on Iran and Syria. Above all, however, Germany wants China to make a concrete pledge to invest in the euro bailout fund. more...
SPIEGEL ONLINE
- February 01, 2012
Many in Europe have been eyeing Beijing's trillions as a possible solution to the continent's debt crisis. During her trip to China, German Chancellor Angela Merkel plans to promote investments in the debt-ridden euro-zone countries. But the Chinese have so far been tight with their money. Will Merkel succeed in getting Beijing to bend? By Philipp Wittrock more...