Politics

Politics in Germany, as well as the EU and global affairs

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State collects too much from pensioners

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Millions of people can hope to pay less tax on their pensions. This is the result of a landmark ruling by the Federal Fiscal Court on Monday. Although Germany's highest tax judges rejected the specific complaint of a tax consultant and a dentist because of the accusation of double taxation. There was no double taxation in either case which is why the appeals were unfounded, the chairwoman of the X. Senate, Jutta Förs, emphasized. For many other people, however, the ruling could bring real...

Schools in Berlin an election issue

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Teacher shortage, dilapidated school buildings, digitalization backlog: The fact that the Corona virus has highlighted the weaknesses of the school system, not only in Berlin, "as if under a burning glass" has almost become a cliché. Now, moreover, the issue is becoming part of the election campaign for the upcoming elections to the Berlin House of Representatives: With the campaign "Schule muss anders" ("School Must be Different") and the single-issue party "Bildet Berlin!" ("Educate...

Switzerland saws at the bridge to Europe

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Switzerland breaks off negotiations with the EU on the conclusion of an institutional framework agreement. This was announced by the Federal Council, as the government is called in Switzerland, on Wednesday afternoon in Bern. Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis (FDP) justified the break-off in a press conference with "substantial differences" in central points of the agreement, which was negotiated for a total of seven years. The agreement was intended to secure Switzerland's access to the European...

Self-determination law for trans people failed

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

A new right to self-determination for trans people will not be introduced for the time being. Corresponding bills from the FDP and the Greens were rejected by a large majority of votes in the Bundestag on Wednesday evening.Thus the transsexual law, which has been in force for 40 years, will continue to exist. In advance, the opposition had put pressure on the SPD to openly release the vote similar to marriage for all and to push through the bills against the coalition partner.There were only 118...

America won't let China play the role of benefactor

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Angela Merkel did not even try to mask her recent disagreement with the U.S. government: "I believe that we need the creativity and innovative power of companies." This includes patent protection. Suspending it is not the solution to making vaccines available to more people, she said after an EU summit in Porto. The problem, she said, is not "that someone is sitting on their patent." It's about producing high-quality vaccine, she said. The German chancellor thus turned against a move by...

President Vladimir Putin is still playing games

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Vladimir Putin is becoming a real enigma with each additional year of his already lavish term in office (21 years). The Russian president seems increasingly distant, withdrawn, inaccessible. At the same time, the swings of his system are becoming less and less predictable. Many years ago, Putin said goodbye to his past as a head of state who was open to the market and turned toward the West. Now he seems to be completely caught in the autocratic dilemma that sooner or later afflicts all...

Laschet, not Söder, CDU candidate for Chancellor

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Following his selection as candidate for chancellor, Armin Laschet calls on the CDU/CSU to unite in the election campaign. "The CDU will not win the election without the CSU - and vice versa," the CDU chairman said in a press conference early this afternoon. He said it was important for the Union to "go into the election as a team." His opponent, CSU leader Markus Söder, had withdrawn his candidacy at midday and pledged his support to Laschet. The latter thanked him for the "good, fair handling...

Merkel lockdown update review

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Those responsible in the federal states have known for some time that the federal-state round of talks next Monday would come to nothing, due to the Chancellor's ebarassing TV appearance on the Sunday evening after the "Easter rest" debacle. The agreement to define Maundy Thursday and Easter Saturday as quasi shut-down days was quickly removed from the table. What Angela Merkel and the Conference of Minister Presidents had decided proved impossible to implement. Merkel's prompt apology...

Reform of euthanasia clears the first hurdle in the Bundestag

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

Whether out of pure charity or in return for payment - anyone who helps others commit suicide remains unpunished in Germany. That was the ruling of the Federal Constitutional Court last year, when it overturned the ban on commercial euthanasia adopted in 2015 - a radical decision, as SPD health politician Karl Lauterbach recently put it. This means that any form of euthanasia, commercial or otherwise, is exempt from punishment. As before the ban, there is no legal framework for assisted suicide...

Japanese Comfort Women resolution requires empathy for South Korea

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

For about 30 years, there have been strained relationships between South Korea and Japan because of the so-called Comfort Women Japan issue. Although an agreement was reached in 2015, South Korea feels it is not enough and insists that Japan has never fully apologized. Japan sees as if South Korea isn't interested in reconciliation. The comfort woman statue in front of Japan's embassy in South Korea that was raised by activists several years ago has yet to be removed. The Japan Comfort...

EU Stability and Growth Pact under scrutiny

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

One year has passed. And two more could follow: In March 2020, the EU Commission and member states suspended the Stability and Growth Pact, invoking the so-called general escape clause in this set of rules for sound public finances. Thanks to the emergency clause, governments can now incur large debts in the fight against the economic consequences of the pandemic without being reprimanded by Brussels. This Wednesday, the Commission will announce the criteria it will use to decide when the...

Scholz wants higher taxes for high earners

December 27, 2025 • 01:30 PM

SPD candidate for chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to push through tax increases for higher earners and the wealthy as well as relief for lower and middle incomes in the coming legislative period. He knows that he "agrees with the vast majority of citizens that we need to make our tax system fairer," the federal finance minister told the Düsseldorf-based "Rheinische Post" newspaper. Scholz stressed that tax fairness includes "those who earn a lot, contributing a little more to the financing of the...

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Hospital and Clinic Directory

Germany is famous for its medical expertise and extensive number of hospitals and clinics. See this comprehensive directory of hospitals and clinics across the country, complete with links to their websites, addresses, contact info, and specializations/services.

Events

Upcoming Events

Christoph Scheuerecker: ,,Ereignis: Erzählung"

Join us at the Kunstraum in der Au for the exhibition titled ,,Ereignis: Erzählung" by Christoph Scheuerecker, focusing on the captivating world of bees. This exhibition invites visitors to explore the intricate relationship between bees and their environment through various artistic expressions,...

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Israeli security agencies have announced formal charges against two individuals accused of using...
German Pharmacists' Association Initiates Petition for Pharmacy Funding Reform
The Federal Union of German Associations of Pharmacists (ABDA) is preparing to launch a petition...
US Increases Military Presence in Middle East Amid Ongoing Iran Negotiations
The United States has decided to strengthen its military presence in the Middle East by deploying an...

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