A huge majority of young people living in Germany don't believe that political engagement can change anything, a survey published on Thursday showed.

The foundation that commissioned the report said politicians were not doing enough to reach out to young people.

The findings come as Germany appears to be headed toward a new general election in February after the collapse of the coalition government.

What the figures showed

Less than one in five of the young people surveyed believed that they can make a difference to any particular cause through personal commitment, the survey by the Verian research institute found.

In the poll of 2,500 representative 16- to 30-year-olds, conducted for Germany's Bertelsmann Foundation, some 38% expressed distrust in politics, with a further third partially expressing the same feeling.

Around 40% assume that social conditions cannot be changed, and almost one in two often feels overwhelmed by the problems in the world.

About half of the respondents said there were insufficient opportunities for young people to participate in politics beyond voting in elections. Many felt there were too many hurdles in the way, stopping them from getting involved.

Fewer than one in 10 said they thought political parties were open to young people's ideas. Only 8% said they thought the political establishment took the concerns of young people seriously.

What could improve the situation?

Despite the extent of disenchantment with political parties, the foundation — which seeks to promote social change by encouraging civil involvement — said a lack of engagement among young people did not arise from a rejection of democracy.

Of those surveyed, it said 61% said they believed that democracy was the best possible form of government despite its weaknesses.

However, almost half said they were unsatisfied with the way democracy works in Germany — a proportion that was higher in the east than in the west.

"Young people would be more politically active if they knew that their efforts were actually having an impact and that their arguments were being heard," said the foundation's expert on youth and democracy, Regina von Görtz.

"This would be their greatest motivation. That is why politicians must do a better job than before of reaching out to young people, valuing their opinions and involving them in decisions."

Issues that were of particular interest to younger people included peace, mental health, education and inflation.

rc/rm (dpa, KNA)

Despite their strong Nations League performance, Germany are left in the awkward position of not yet knowing their exact 2026 World Cup qualifying path — even after Friday's draw.

After finishing top of their Nations League group, Germany will face Italy in the quarterfinals in March 2025. The outcome of that game will affect which World Cup qualifying group Germany ends up in.

If Germany win their quarterfinal against Italy, they will be in Group A with Slovakia, Northern Ireland and Luxembourg, and will start their campaign in September. Germany haven't played Slovakia since Euro 2016. They also played Northern Ireland in that tournament, but beat them more recently in qualifiers for Euro 2021. Germany haven't played Luxembourg in nearly 20 years.

If they lose to Italy, they will be in Group I with Norway, Israel, Estonia and Moldova and start their qualifying campaign in March. Being in this group would mean a return to Germany for Erling Haalandand a first-ever qualifier against Israel for Germany's men. Germany would also face Moldova for the first time since 1999, and play Estonia again, having last faced them in qualifying for Euro 2021, winning the home game 8-0.

In short, beating Italy would not only give Germany a chance at winning the Nations League but also place them in a smaller World Cup qualifying group that would start later in the year.

“I think group A is a little more comfortable but it’s hard to know right now," said Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann. With draws, it can always be worse or better. I think in group I, Norway are a very good team with many good and experienced players. Group A might be the easier path but we have to beat Italy first. That’s the next step.”

Germany dominated their 2022 World Cup qualifying group, losing just once albeit notably at home to North Macedonia. Under Julian Nagelsmann, Germany have been rejuvinated, losing only one game in all of 2024.

A complicated draw

Elsewhere in the European part of the World Cup qualifying draw, Thomas Tuchel's England were drawn in Group K with Serbia, Albania, Latvia and Andorra.

With the 2026 tournament set to be the first World Cup with 48 teams, UEFA now has 16 qualifying spots on offer. They will be secured by the 12 group winners, and the runners-up (plus four teams with the best Nations League records) will go into the playoffs for the final four European spots.

In addition to the 16 European teams, there will be nine teams from Africa, eight from Asia and six from South America. Canada, the US and Mexico all qualify automatically as hosts and there will be three more teams from North and Central America (CONCACAF). Oceania have an automatic spot for the first time and two more will qualify through the intercontinental playoffs in March 2026.

Edited by: Chuck Penfold

Germany has offered to support Syria following the fall of President Bashar Assad's regime — but only if all of the country's many population groups are included, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said this week.

Speaking with reporters in Berlin, she spoke of a "moment of hope" for the country but also expressed concern that this could be deceptive. All efforts must now be made to "ensure that Syria finds the path to a peaceful and stable future for all."

In the long term, this also includes a legal process within Syria to come to terms with Assad's rule, the foreign minister said. "Without justice, there can be no lasting reconciliation and thus no peaceful coexistence."

Baerbock's ministry issued an eight-point plan this week, which said that the most important goal in the coming weeks was "that there is a peaceful transfer of power."

However, it added that a civilian government accepted by all sides would only be successful "if all minorities and political groups are at the table." Women's rights must also be respected, Baerbock said, before adding that it would be "a rocky road" that would one day hopefully end with free elections.

How moderate is al-Golani?

That didn't sound very confident, despite the euphoria among Syrians and the moderate rhetoric coming from the current leaders in Damascus. The transitional government led by the Islamist militia HTS has promised to guarantee the rights of all religious groups. Syria is home to numerous ethnic and religious minorities, such as Kurds, Alawites, Druze and Christians. "We will judge HTS by its actions," said Baerbock.

Her doubts stem from the fact that HTS emerged from the al-Nusra Front, the Syrian branch of the al-Qaeda terrorist network. However, HTS has said that it has had no links to al-Qaeda since 2016. Its leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, presents himself as a moderate. Nevertheless, the United Nations, the EU, the United States and Turkey currently classify the militia as a terrorist organization.

Hans-Jakob Schindler, Middle East expert and director of the international organization Counter Extremism Project, welcomed al-Golani's initial statements but pointed out that the HTS "did not fight and bleed alone [against Assad]," but also alongside hard-line Islamist groups.

"They have a different idea of what the political system in Syria should look like," he told DW. "And these groups have yet to be given power and influence, and may have ideological ideas."

Al-Golani himself is said to have changed, according to Schindler, though he added "you can believe it, but you don't have to." In any case, his alleged political transformation is clever, he said.

"If al-Golani can now establish himself or his prime minister as the go-between to the West and practically as a hinge for all the possible aid money and political contacts that Europe and America and the rest of the world can offer, then, of course, he has secured his central position in the power system … in the long term."

'Israel still doesn't trust the new situation'

Germany wants to offer diplomatic support in Syria's transition and is calling on Israel and Turkey not to question Syria's territorial integrity. The negotiation inside Syria must not be "torpedoed from the outside," said Baerbock.

"Neighbors such as the Turkish and Israeli governments, who are asserting their security interests, must not endanger the process with their actions," she emphasized.

In recent days, Israel has not only attacked military targets in Syria and destroyed military equipment but has also stationed troops in the buffer zone established in 1974 on the Syrian Golan Heights. According to the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, this is only a temporary measure and is intended to prevent "jihadi groups from filling the vacuum" created by the end of Assad's rule. Under international law, the Golan Heights belong to Syria, though in the Six-Day War of 1967, Israel occupied large parts of it and annexed the area in 1981.

"Israel still doesn't trust the new situation," said Schindler. "Because it's a sad truth that, from an Israeli point of view, cooperation with the Assad regime was not a bad thing." Since the 1970s, the Assad regime has kept the Golan Heights quiet and even tolerated Israeli attacks on Hezbollah targets in Syria.

Turkey plays a key role for the West

For its part, Turkey has a great deal of influence in Syria. For years, it supported Assad's opponents, including Islamist militias, while taking action against Kurdish units in the north to prevent the Kurds from gaining strength.

Turkey itself has a large Kurdish minority, and after Assad's fall, Ankara stepped up attacks on Kurdish-controlled areas in northeastern Syria, especially on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) — recognized as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union.

Turkey also plays a key role for the West's chance to influence Syria's future path, said Schindler. He views the German government's eight-point plan positively, but has reservations.

"Unfortunately, we have no influence whatsoever on any groups in Syria. We have more or less kept out of it all, for reasons of self-interest, and the Americans have done the same to a large extent," he said.

If there is any influence at all, he added, it would come through Turkey, hence the visits of both EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Ankara in recent days.

Germany plans to send humanitarian aid

What the German government cannot, and does not, have to wait on is providing humanitarian aid for Syria. Germany has pledged €8 million ($8.4 million) in emergency aid.

According to Development Minister Svenja Schulze, Germany will also spend around €125 million on development projects in Syria this year, including money to support the water supply in Aleppo and the operation of hospitals in Idlib, in Syria's northwest.

This article was originally written in German.

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Multiple institutions and individuals involved in Holocaust education, remembrance and research silenced their X accounts on Friday, joining an ongoing exodus from the social media platform owned by tech billionaire-turned-Trump policy adviser Elon Musk. 

The coordinated departures are part of an initiative called "Not One More Word," organized by the Association of Jewish Refugees (AJR), a UK-based nonprofit that provides social and welfare services to Holocaust refugees and survivors, as well as Holocaust education.

In an initiative statement, the AJR lamented the changes that have taken place since Musk's takeover of the platform formerly known as Twitter in October 2022.

"Misinformation, distortion and abuse have flourished while security and content moderation measures have all but disappeared," the statement reads. "Meanwhile, as a business, X relies on our content to keep its users engaged. More engagement means more advertising revenue. Simply put, X profits from our presence there — it profits from each word we post. We say NOT ONE MORE WORD."

As of December 12, 17 Holocaust-related organizations and 22 individuals involved in Holocaust research and writing, primarily in the UK and Germany, had joined the initiative. The participants also pledged to support one another's content on other social media platforms.

The initiative participants are joining newspapers, football clubs, major nonprofits and individuals  leaving X for alternative options, with significant numbers deactivating their accounts after the November 6 reelection of Donald Trump.

A decision long in the works

The AJR's decision to leave X was a yearlong evolution rather than the result of a certain tipping point, Alex Maws, the organization's head of education and heritage, explained. A pivotal moment, however, was when Musk shared an endorsement of the "great replacement" theory — a racist, antisemitic common among far-right extremists and white supremacists.

"That was the thing that caught a lot of people's attention ... seeing [how] that was actually just one example of [how] the site was a platform that didn't just tolerate abuse and misinformation but ... seems to be promoting it, pushing it to people who were not looking for anything," Maws told DW, pointing out that no one knows how the X algorithm works.

Maws and the AJR feel that the disinformation, misinformation and abuse abounding on X now outweigh the benefit of trying to reach and educate audiences on the platform. He decided to share the decision to leave X and reached out to the field's professional network to "embolden others to do something that might feel a bit risky in today's communication environment." 

In reaction to the collective decision to leave X, various individuals have accused Maws and his association of organizing a "political campaign" and a "left-wing plot," but the campaign has nothing to do with Musk's politics, Maws stressed.

"It's very important to say that antisemitism knows no permanent political home," he said. "This really has nothing to do with Musk's alignment with President-elect Trump. There are probably corporate executives with whom many of us disagree all across the corporate sector, but we don't necessarily disengage from their products or their platforms, because those views don't necessarily impact upon them."

Joining the call in Germany

The AJR's initiative reached and resonated with the House of the Wannsee Conference (GHWK), in Berlin's southwestern suburbs, which also signed on to the initiative. Today a Holocaust educational and memorial, the villa was the location of a conference in January 1942 during which Nazi political and military officials discussed the implementation of the "final solution" — the state-sanctioned deportation and murder of Jews across Europe.

Employees there had also been talking for around a year about leaving X; they have been using Bluesky, a popular alternative, alongside X since last October. 

"We really wouldn't have needed a campaign or a call [to leave]," said Eike Stegen, the GHWK's press relations officer. "We had reached a point in our internal discussions where we said we wanted to leave the platform. But we wanted to join a campaign or a call because we wanted to motivate as many other accounts in our field as possible to leave the platform with us."

The AJR initiative is, in fact, the second X-leaving campaign the GHWK has joined; on December 2, it announced it was joining a German-organized campaign called #eXit.

Stegen is confident that they will be able to reach an audience on alternative platforms. "But even if this isn't the case and we lose some resonance, we think it's worth it," he said.

Responsibility toward Holocaust survivors, descendants

Stegen would have liked to see greater international reach with the initiative, since, as he explained, "social media platforms rely on the creation of a social environment where you can be heard and communicate with others."

Maws is clear that he does not judge anyone for remaining on X. "People and organizations need to make these decisions based on their own strategic goals and if being on X, still serves those goals, great," he said. 

For the AJR, however, which was founded by Holocaust refugees and survivors, the issue was one of responsibility: Would those founders and their descendants want us to share their history, legacy and stories "on a website that was seemingly, as part of its business model — as a feature, not a bug — promoting antisemitism, disinformation, Holocaust distortion and hatred more generally? It just feels like it's not appropriate for a charity such as ours to be contributing to that environment." 

Edited by: Elizabeth Grenier

Not even the cold temperatures in early December could deter the members of a padel club in Niederwalgern, just over 80 kilometers (about 50 miles) north of Frankfurt, from getting together for the last tournament of the season.

"Padel has become a passion," said Marco Otto, who took up the new sport, which is more about fun and community than competition, around two years ago. "It's a fast, dynamic game."

Little effort for a lot of fun

Padel is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world. The smaller courts are similar to tennis, with a net in the middle and two service courts, but the court is partially surrounded by glass panes, similar to squash, which can be included in the game as barriers to deflect the ball. Players use a short, plastic racket.

"The biggest difference to other backs-troke sports is that you don't have to invest so much to have fun," youth coach Jan Weitzel told DW. "Padel is easier to learn than other sports, especially for children and young people whose frustration tolerance is not yet as high."

According to Weitzel, tennis, for example, is much more training-intensive. With padel, a player can get that first sense of achievement after just a few sessions.

Tennis not turning a profit

The club in Niederwalgern only had the new courts built two years ago, having previously focused exclusively on tennis. However, this was no longer profitable in the long term because, as with other clubs in Germany, demographic change was causing problems.

"We had an outdated membership structure and dwindling membership numbers, as well as few new members. As a result, at some point we were no longer able to offer team matches and hardly any training sessions," said board member Moritz Blömer. Interest in traditional tennis gradually waned.

Blömer: 'At some point, the thing would have been dead'

According to the Federal Statistical Office, the German population is getting older on average, with the birth rate falling. This not only has an impact on the labor market and pensions, but also means many sports clubs are gradually losing their base.

Older people often retire from active club functions, while young members are missing as replacements. Streaming services, social media and video games have become increasingly popular and are displacing sport and traditional club activities.

"Due to the declining number of members, it might have gone well for another 10 years and we could have kept the business going," said Blömer. "But at some point, the thing would have been dead."

The demise of clubs has serious social consequences for a society, as clubs offer spaces for interpersonal interaction and promote a sense of community, integration and social skills.

"The great thing about club life is the team spirit," said padel enthusiast Marco Otto. "You meet like-minded people and it often quickly develops into friendship. You meet up and have a lot of fun."

Club takes risks, gets into debt

This was also the case for Blömer when he moved with his family to Niederwalgern 13 years ago. He signed up to the tennis club and quickly made friends with the locals. However, the club had to change in order to attract younger players.

"We discovered padel as a trending sport," explained Blömer. "And we simply wanted to try to continue offering something young, modern and attractive."

Two courts were initially planned to be built, and the small club took a financial risk in making the move. "It was an investment that was 10 times our bank balance," recalled the 41-year-old. However, with sponsors, public funding and an increase in membership fees, the money was eventually raised.

Development in Germany on the right track

In order for the plan to work, the club needed 30 new members — a large number with just 1,400 inhabitants in the community.

But their new courts were the first with a 100-kilometer radius, and combined with adverts on digital channels and organized events the move to padel was a success.

"We now have 80 padel-playing members. Of these, around 40 are former tennis players who have switched to padel within the club," said Blömer, adding proudly: "As a club, we have grown by around 30% in the last two years."

Young people in particular have joined the club and become part of the new padel community. Training takes place twice a week, there is a team registered in the second division and tournaments are held regularly. The padel club of the nearby comprehensive school also uses the club's courts.

Padel is growing rapidly

Figures from the business consulting agency Deloitte show that padel is not only booming regionally, but throughout Germany and the rest of the world.

According to the Global Padel Report of 2024, there were around 10,000 courts worldwide in 2016. Today there are almost 50,000, and that number continues to rise.

Padel was invented in Mexico in 1965, and initially took its time to develop in Europe. In Spain, though, padel is the second-most popular sport after football — with around 16,000 courts and more than 5 million players. There has been a worldwide professional tour for almost 20 years, and the best players come from Spain and Latin America.

In Germany, on the other hand, the sport is still in its infancy. There are currently just under 600 courts here — 300 more than in 2022.

This article was originally written in German.

Svenja Schulze, the German development minister of the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), had scheduled a press conference in Berlin to speak about the last three extremely difficult years for her ministry: During this time, the projects she has been working on around the world had come under constant attack. Especially from right-wing populists who have been gaining ground in Germany and who often express nothing but hatred and derision for anyone offering support to the poor in the global South.

But given the very urgent situation in Syria, the SPD politician took the opportunity to talk about the new potential she sees for Germany's involvement there. In the years since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, German development assistance to the country has fallen to currently €125 million ($132 million).

That money was used to support United Nations projects, such as providing drinking water to Aleppo. In other words, the basic necessities on the smallest level, more was simply not possible because of the constant fighting in the country.

But now Schulze wants to do more. "The Development Ministry has been preparing for this moment for 13 years. Building state structures is our core business,” she said.

Cuts to the federal budget 

But it was this core business that was repeatedly criticized during the almost three years in which the coalition government of SPD, environmentalist Greens, and neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP)were in power.

During negotiations on the 2025 budget, Schulze only just managed to secure €10.3 billion for her ministry, almost a billion euros less than in 2024. There had been repeated claims that Germany could no longer afford expensive projects abroad at a time when housing is becoming scarce and infrastructure is crumbling at home.

Following the collapse of the coalition, the budget remains unresolved, but it seems unlikely that the Development Ministry will receive more money in the future. Still clearly outraged, Schulze said: "What was new was the intensity of the criticism and the deliberate spreading of falsehoods. We saw a perfect example of this with the now famed bike paths in Peru."

The Alternative for Germany (AfD), a party with some far-right extremist factions, had claimed that Schulze was spending a whopping €315 million on new cycle paths in the Latin American country. In fact, it was only around 20 million euros in grants and a further 40 million euros in loans — money that will be paid back. Schulze has now added the information that German companies were also involved in the construction of the bike paths, which were used as a means of connecting to the metro system. Because German companies were involved, the project was also of benefit to the German economy.

Self-confident countries in the Global South

According to Schulze, the projects in Peru are a good example of the principles on which she bases her development cooperation: In an increasingly multipolar world, she said, support for poorer countries must be given on an equal footing, otherwise many countries will turn to Russia or China, which often cooperate on the basis of geopolitical interests: "The countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America are rightly becoming increasingly self-confident. They choose their partners. And it is our task to remain a strong partner in this new, multipolar world."

According to the minister, another priority over the past three years has been the attempt to develop projects that are more strongly feminist in their approach. And this is another issue for which the ministry has repeatedly been criticized. Schulze announced a goal that by 2025, at least 93% of all projects approved will be designed to promote gender equality. In 2022, this was only the case for 66% of projects, whereas in 2024 it rose to around 91%.

The Development Policy Report is published once per legislative period and primarily serves to provide the Bundestag with an overview of development policy. Despite all of her efforts, it remains uncertain whether the SPD politician Schulze will be able to continue her work. Now that the FDP has left the government, the Social Democrats and the Greens are governing as a minority government.

And a new Bundestag will be elected on February 23. Svenja Schulze's party, the SPD, is currently far behind the conservatives in the polls.

This article was originally written in German.

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Loneliness is becoming an increasingly serious problem in Germany, according to a new survey carried out by one of the country's leading public health insurers.

Around 60% of Germans suffer from loneliness either often, sometimes or rarely, according to the survey, which was presented in Berlin on Wednesday by the Techniker Krankenkasse (TK) health insurance company.

The study is based on a representative telephone survey of 1,403 people carried out in May by the research institute, Forsa.

It found that loneliness appears to particularly affect younger people — of those in the 18 to 39 age group, 68% said they often, sometimes or rarely felt lonely. The issue also seems to trouble younger people more: 36% of 18 to 39-year-olds said the feeling of loneliness weighs on them very heavily or quite heavily, while among the age groups between 40 and 59 and the 60-plus generation, the figure was only 19% and 21% respectively.

Speaking at a press conference presenting the report in Berlin on Wednesday, Janosch Schobin, a sociologist who works for the government-supported Loneliness Network, said this loneliness is often triggered by the changing life circumstances more likely to happen in younger years: leaving home, moving to new towns, shifting between jobs.

Single people are three times more likely to feel lonely than those with partners, and though there is no difference between men and women in the intensity of the feeling of loneliness, a partnership does play a role: 33% of singles feel very or quite strongly burdened by loneliness. Among people who have a steady partner, this figure is only 22%.

Loneliness remains taboo for men

The study found that education level, work or whether people lived in large or small towns were not significant factors in whether or not people were lonely. Nor was there a significant difference between the number of lonely men and women.

The main contributing factors to loneliness were the state of a person's partnerships and social networks. However, poverty increases the chances of being lonely, and older single people are at a higher risk of loneliness than younger singles.

Changing life circumstances are also a significant factor: Losing a job and a partner through separation or death often leads to a collapse of social networks and loneliness.

But the report found that admitting to loneliness continues to be difficult for people, especially men. Only 22% of men who experienced loneliness said they talked about it with other people — compared with 40% of female respondents to the survey.

The main reason given was that "didn't want to burden others" with the issue. Some 29% said it was uncomfortable for them to talk about loneliness, while 9% said they had no one with whom they could talk about their loneliness.

Loneliness is a health issue

Physical and mental ailments are also associated with an increased sense of loneliness. Some 23% of people who experienced loneliness said they consider their health poor — compared with 13% of those who do not feel lonely.

Poor health can especially lead to loneliness if individual limitations, such as those caused by disabilities, hearing loss or phases of depression, make communication with others more difficult.

Loneliness appears to be a psychological stressor: Symptoms such as stress and exhaustion, tiredness, feeling low, sleep disorders and anxiety occur much more frequently in lonely people.

"Loneliness can lead to physical ailments, too. That isn't a theory anymore. It has been proven," Jens Baas, board chairman at the TK health insurance company, said Wednesday, mentioning links to dementia.

Lonely people also appear to experience general physical ailments more frequently, including back pain and stomachaches, breathing difficulties and asthma.

Exactly why there should be a connection between loneliness and health remains something of a scientific mystery.

"It would be nice if we could explain the connection, but it's not that easy," said Baas. "In science, we can see that there is a clear connection between the soul and the body — we see it in many illnesses, but how it works physiologically, we don't know."

Edited by: Rina Goldenberg

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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is seeking a vote of confidence in the lower house of Parliament, the Bundestag, which he is expected to lose, triggering an early general election.

Scholz's three-way center-left government broke apart on November 6, paving the way for an early federal election expected on February 23, 2025.

Early elections have been extremely rare in Germany, but they are a vital democratic measure. They are regulated by the German constitution and require the approval of several constitutional bodies, not least of the head of state, the president.

Two possible scenarios

According to the German constitution, a decision to hold an early federal election cannot be made by the members of the Bundestag, nor by the chancellor. An early dissolution of parliament can only come about in one of two ways.

In the first case, if a candidate for chancellor does not win an absolute parliamentary majority — at least 367 votes in the 733-seat Bundestag — the German president can dissolve the parliament. This has never happened in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany.

In the second case, a chancellor can call for a vote of confidence in the Bundestag to confirm whether he or she still has sufficient parliamentary support. If the chancellor fails to win a majority, he or she can formally ask the president to dissolve the Bundestag within 21 days.

Following the dissolution of parliament, an election must be held within 60 days. They are organized in the same way as normal general elections, with the federal returning officer and the Federal Interior Ministry responsible for their implementation. 

Three early Bundestag elections have been held to date in the Federal Republic of Germany: in 1972, 1983 and 2005.

Willy Brandt

Willy Brandt, the first chancellor from the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD), governed in a coalition with the neoliberal Free Democratic Party (FDP) beginning in 1969. His "Ostpolitik" (politics toward the East) led to a vote of confidence in 1972.

Brandt had pushed ahead with his policy of rapprochement during the Cold War to ease relations with the socialist Eastern European bloc, a highly controversial move in West Germany. Major splits emerged within the government, causing several SPD and FDP Bundestag lawmakers to quit. The government's majority was dramatically reduced, and Brandt's support fell to parity with the opposition conservatives, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the regional Bavarian Christian Socialist Union (CSU): each side had 248 representatives in the Bundestag. 

That stalemate paralyzed proceedings, so Brandt sought a solution. On June 24, 1972, he stated that "the citizens" had a "right to ensure that legislation does not come to a standstill." He also said there was a growing danger "that the opposition will fundamentally refuse to cooperate constructively. Therefore, I am announcing that we are seeking new elections."

Brandt called for a vote of confidence in the Bundestag with the aim of losing it, so that his chancellorship could be reconfirmed by voters in fresh elections. This move was fiercely criticized, also by constitutional lawyers who argued that deliberately losing a vote of confidence was not consistent with the spirit of the constitution, the Basic Law.

Brandt stuck to his plan and called a vote of confidence on September 20, 1972 — and lost, as he had planned. That set the path for the Bundestag's dissolution and a new election, which was held on November 19, 1972.

Brandt was reelected as chancellor, and the SPD received 45.8% of the vote — its best result to date. Voter turnout was the highest ever for a Bundestag election, at 91.1%.

Helmut Kohl

Helmut Kohl, of the CDU, was responsible for the second early Bundestag election, in 1983. Kohl assumed power following a constructive vote of confidence in the then Chancellor Helmut Schmidt (SPD), in October 1982. The majority of parliamentarians had withdrawn their confidence in Schmidt due to differences over his economic and security policy.

Because Kohl's coalition of the CDU/CSU and FDP came to power through a vote of confidence and not a general election, Kohl wished for additional legitimacy through a general election. He called for a vote of confidence, which he, too, deliberately lost on December 17, 1982, resulting in the dissolution of the Bundestag. Kohl said at the time, "I opened the way to new elections in order to stabilize the government and obtain a clear majority in the Bundestag."

Some Bundestag members found that unacceptable and filed a complaint with the Federal Constitutional Court. After 41 days of hearings, the Karlsruhe judges approved Kohl's path to a new election by a deliberate vote of no confidence. However, they emphasized that a vote of confidence was only permissible during a "genuine" crisis.

The subsequent election held on March 6, 1983, confirmed Kohl as chancellor, and his government was able to carry on with a clear majority.

Gerhard Schröder

The SPD's Gerhard Schröder initiated Germany's third early election in 2005. He was chancellor at the time, heading a coalition with the Greens.

The SPD was struggling after a series of state election defeats and declining support in the Bundestag. The dwindling support was mostly due to Schröder's controversial Agenda 2010 reforms, which had drastically changed the social system and the labor market. Schröder called for a vote of confidence, which he deliberately lost on July 1, 2005, thus triggering a new election.

"I am firmly convinced that the majority of Germans want me to continue along this path. But I can only gain the necessary clarity only through a new election," Schröder said after the vote.

But his calculation went afoul. The early election, held on September 18, 2005, gave Angela Merkel's CDU/CSU a narrow majority. She became chancellor, heading a CDU/CSU-led coalition supported by the SPD. That was the start of 16 years in office for Merkel.

This article was originally written in German. It was first published on October 16, 2024, and has been updated with the latest developments.

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"It breaks my heart! You can't treat people this way. We've worked so hard for Thyssenkrupp," said Helmut Renk, the 62-year-old works council chairman of the steelmaker's facility in Kreuztal-Eichen, Germany. 

Venting his anger and frustration about the plant's likely closure, he added that he's been working there for 40 years — just like his father before and his son now.

Renk's hard feelings are currently shared by many employees of the German steel giant, argues trade union official Ulrike Hölter. Representing the central Ruhr Valley branch of the IG Metall metalworkers' union, Hölter said the steelworkers are especially angry with management and anxious about their own future.

The imminent dismissal of the 500 steelworkers in Kreuztal-Eichen, she is convinced, will not only reverberate in the small town in western Germany but will be felt throughout the entire country.

What is Thyssenkrupp planning?

In late November, Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE), said it would eliminate 11,000 jobs in total — 5,000 of which would be axed by 2030 and another 6,000 shed through spin-offs or divestitures. The job cuts amount to about 40% of its total German workforce of 27,000.

The Kreuztal-Eichen plant, which specializes in processing steel, is slated for complete closure.

TKSE also announced it will reduce its overall steel production capacity from 11.5 million tons to just under 9 million tons by divesting its stake in Hüttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann (HKM) in Duisburg, Germany.

However, if that sale is not achievable, TKSE has said it would discuss closure scenarios with other shareholders. Additionally, a plant in Bochum is now set to shut down by 2027 — three years earlier than previously planned.

"Urgent measures are required to improve Thyssenkrupp Steel's own productivity and operating efficiency and to achieve a competitive cost level," the company said in a statement.

The goal is to reduce personnel costs by some 10% on average in the coming years. 

Why is Thyssenkrupp struggling?

TKSE, which is the steelmaking unit of the Thyssenkrupp industrial conglomerate, is the largest steel producer in Germany. The company faces increasing overcapacity and intense competition from cheaper steel imports from Asia. Additionally, Germany's all-important automotive industry is struggling amid a transition to electric vehicles, which has led to reduced demand for steel.

Moreover, the current government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz has attempted the make steel production in Germany less polluting, singling out TKSE as a landmark project for the world's first hydrogen-powered blast furnaces in Duisburg. However, it remains unclear if the billions in state subsidies for so-called green steel produced without carbon emissions will ever pay off.

Plus in August, several members of TKSE's supervisory board resigned, accusing the leadership of failing to invest adequately in the steel division to maintain its competitiveness.

Gerhard Bosch from the University of Duisburg-Essen also blames "insufficient investment" for part of the crisis. "Thyssenkrupp Steel has quality and investment issues resulting from poor business decisions," he told DW.

In the throes of change

Gerhard Bosch, who is a former member of Thyssenkrupp's supervisory board, said he thinks the company's crisis is likely to spill over into countless jobs beyond its own workforce as every steelmaking job "typically supports at least one other job" along the supply chain in Germany.

The Ruhr Valley region was once Germany's industrial heartland with numerous coal mines and steel mills centered around the towns of Duisburg and Essen. After the last coal mine closed in 2018, an era came to an end leaving deep scars and the region economically depressed.

Unemployment there is still higher than in the rest of Germany, said Gerhard Bosch, and the loss of the steel jobs "will hit Duisburg especially hard."

However, the German steel industry is not the only industrial sector currently hit by massive disruption. Many more companies are planning to slash jobs, including automakers Volkswagen and Ford, and technology giant Bosch.

As Germany's export-driven economy is experiencing reduced demand for its products on a global scale, it is expected to shrink for the second consecutive year, according to numerous forecasts.

Defiant labor unions vow to fight back

Meanwhile, German labor unions, especially the powerful IG Metall metalworkers' union, are gearing up for a long battle to save threatened jobs.

Frank Patzelt, a rolling mill worker and union member at TKSE in Bochum, said that while some colleagues feel hopeless, many are ready to fight.

"If we stick together, we can push for a better outcome for ourselves," he told DW.

This article was originally written in German.

On a cold December evening, scores of Christmas market revelers, bundled up in coats, scarves and hats, are crowding around a stall that reflects Cologne's landmark cathedral in its glass panels. A sweet aroma fills the air and people are speaking German, French, English and Dutch. Behind the counter, cashews and dried fruits are piled high.

Most visitors' eyes, however, are drawn to the centerpiece of the display: stacks of handcrafted milk chocolate bars that have been hand-painted green and are known as "Dubai chocolate."

Initially a social media phenomenon, the crunchy delicacy has now made its way to traditional German Christmas markets like the one in Cologne.

The stall is run by Kischmisch Manufaktur, a local delicatessen. Its founder, Nasratullah Kushkaki, says Dubai chocolate is currently his top seller, and often sells out despite a price of €7.50 ($7.96) for 100 grams.

Kushkaki isn't the only one capitalizing on the viral trend, with Christmas market vendors all over Germany now featuring tasty inventions like Dubai chocolate crepes, hot Dubai chocolate and Dubai chocolate waffles. But can just anyone use the term "Dubai chocolate" for their products?

Originating in the Middle East

As the name suggests, Dubai chocolate likely originated in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Sarah Hamouda, the founder of Dubai-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier and a social media influencer, is credited as its creator. The entrepreneur shared on Instagram that it all began with her cravings during pregnancy.

Her husband was unable to find the perfect dessert for her in Dubai, so she invented one herself: crisp chocolate filled with pistachio cream and crunchy kadayif pastry threads. Soon, the treat went viral on TikTok.

Is the name protected?

Nearly anyone can recreate this trendy chocolate treat, but can they call it Dubai chocolate?

Origin-based product names can be protected globally as a trademark. For instance, the term Champagne is reserved for sparkling wine from France's Champagne region.

The Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement is an international treaty involving 30 countries, including EU states, that basically protects products based on the geographical name of a country, region or locality where a product is made.

But as patent attorney Rüdiger Bals explained, this protection applies only to countries that are part of the treaty — and the UAE is not a member. That means they cannot protect the term Dubai chocolate under this agreement, he told DW.

Still, bilateral agreements between countries could secure protection. The UAE could "theoretically register Dubai chocolate as a geographic indication within its jurisdiction," Germany's Patent and Trademark Office told DW in a statement, and then apply for protection in the EU.

A popular brand name

Bakeries, patisseries, influencers and even large chocolate manufacturers like Swiss company Lindt, meanwhile, are embracing the trend and selling their own products under the name Dubai chocolate.

In Germany alone, there are 19 active trademark applications for sweets with Dubai in their name, according to the patent office. Across Europe, there were more than 30 such applications as of December 4, 2024.

However Bals doubts these applications will be successful because "trademark law examines whether a term is distinctive, and the term Dubai chocolate as such likely lacks sufficient uniqueness," he said.

Dubai chocolate has become a generic term for pistachio cream-filled chocolate with kadayif, similar to the term chocolate Santa Claus, which also cannot be trademarked because it is widely understood as a general term for a chocolate figure shaped like Santa Claus.

Bals also thinks that simply adding a manufacturer's name is unlikely to provide enough distinction.

Some manufacturers have tried to register variations, for example the German YouTuber Kiki Aweimer with the name "Kiki's Dubai Chocolate." But since Aweimer's chocolate is likely not different enough from the Dubai chocolate of other manufacturers, the product will probably not be able to establish itself as a brand.

According to Bals, using the term Dubai chocolate could, moreover, create "issues of misleading representation," as trademark laws reject terms that "imply a false geographic connection." That means calling a product Dubai chocolate may be misleading if no ingredients — like chocolate or pistachios — are actually sourced from Dubai.

Creator silent despite global craze

The original creator, Sarah Hamouda and her company Fix Dessert Chocolatier, could theoretically register the term Dubai chocolate as a trademark in Germany or the EU. DW reached out to the company about potential plans for protection, but received no response by the time of writing.

Despite the unresolved trademark issues, one thing is certain: this year, countless Dubai chocolate bars will be enjoyed worldwide.

For Nasratullah Kushkaki, the chocolate frenzy is a delight that came at the right moment. As the sun sets over the Christmas market in Cologne, more people are lining up at his stall eager for a little chocolate luxury.

This article was originally written in German.

Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war in 2011, millions of Syrians have fled. Most of them have remained in Syria as internally displaced persons (IDPs) or have sought refuge in neighboring countries such as Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt.

Many of them have taken refuge in Europe, particularly in Germany.

How many Syrians live in Germany?

According to the German Federal Statistical Office, around 973,000 Syrians were living in Germany at the end of 2023. Some 712,000 of them have been granted refugee status, which includes asylum seekers with pending applications and asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected but who have been granted temporary protection on humanitarian grounds.

A significant number of these people came to Germany in 2015 when more than 320,000 Syrians sought protection. While many of them now have a permanent residence permit, fewer have been granted a temporary stay order. This means that although they can stay temporarily, their legal situation remains uncertain. Often, this group only has limited access to work and educational opportunities.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, Syrian nationals were the largest group of naturalized citizens last year. Their number rose to 75,500. On average, they lived in Germany for 6.8 years before receiving a German passport. By the end of 2023, more than 160,000 Syrians had been granted German citizenship. 

Germany stops processing Syrian asylum applications after Assad ouster

In 2024, Syria was once again the most common country of origin for those seeking asylum in Germany. According to the German Federal Statistical Office, almost 75,000 asylum applications were submitted by Syrians by November, followed by 34,300 from Afghanistan and around 29,600 from Turkey.

As of December 9, however, one day after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) issued an immediate freeze on asylum applications from Syrian citizens. According to BAMF, this applies to 47,270 pending asylum applications from Syrians, including around 46,000 preliminary applications. The new situation in Syria does not currently impact ongoing cases.

Around 236,000 asylum applications have been submitted in Germany so far this year. This does not include refugees from Ukraine, as they are granted temporary protection status without an asylum procedure.

The majority of Syrian refugees in Germany are men, while only around 41% are women. Overall, Syrians in Germany tend to be younger than the general population: on average, they are around 25 years old. Around 37% are minors.

According to BAMF statistics, more than 60% of those who applied for asylum in Germany between 2017 and 2023 were married. Many of the children of Syrian refugees were born in Germany. Between 2019 (when the survey began) and 2024, this amounted to around 56,200 children.

More than 60 % of the Syrians who have applied for asylum in Germany since 2015 are Arab. Around one-third belong to the Kurdish minority. A clear majority of more than 90% are Muslim, less than two percent are Christian, and around one percent are Yazidi.

Where in Germany do Syrians live?

The majority of Syrians live in the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, and Baden-Württemberg, which are particularly attractive because of the population density — which applies to North Rhine-Westphalia in particular — and because they offer better job opportunities. Large cities such as Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg also offer access to support programs and networks. Rural regions tend to be less popular because they offer fewer opportunities for integration and employment.

Compared to other refugee groups, Syrian refugees are generally considered well-qualified. Almost half of those who came to Germany between 2015 and 2017 had a high school or university degree. Among refugees who came to Germany later, the figure was more than a third. In the 2022/23 school year, around 186,000 Syrian pupils attended public schools in Germany, and another 50,000 attended vocational schools.

Language barriers and obstacles in recognizing professional qualifications

According to the Federal Employment Agency, around 226,600 Syrians are currently employed in jobs with social security coverage (as of May 2024). Around 279,600 Syrians were registered with the Federal Employment Agency as "looking for work" at the end of November 2024. Of these, 155,100 are "unemployed." This means that they are currently in the labor market. Their unemployment rate is 37%.

Many work in the construction, catering, and care sectors, and there is a rapidly growing interest in further education and professional qualifications. The biggest obstacles to employment are language barriers and problems with recognizing Syrian professional qualifications.

Syrians invaluable for German healthcare system

Syrian workers play a particularly important role in the healthcare sector, where they perform urgently needed services. Many of them have been able to enter the nursing profession thanks to specialized training programs.

If these people choose to or are forced to return to their home countries following the end of the Assad dictatorship — as some politicians are already calling for — the existing shortage of skilled workers in the healthcare system could worsen. The German Ministry of Health has bemoaned that there are already around 200,000 vacancies in the nursing sector.

This article was originally written in German.

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

After only four months in the home of Hollywood, Marco Reus finally got his hands on his most desired possession; a league title.

The dynamic midfielder's glittering 12-year career at Borussia Dortmund saw him finish as Bundesliga runner-up a heartbreaking seven times.

But, under the lights in California, at the age of 35, Reus finally achieved his long-held goal, as he lifted the MLS Cup with new club LA Galaxy.

"I don't know if this is a Hollywood finale, but it is a big day," he admitted after the match. "You always work your whole career toward being successful, trying to reach as many finals as possible and then win."

"That didn't work out so much for me in Germany but as I said when I arrived, the goal was always to continue to be successful."

Injury could finally not deny Reus

While viewed as one of Dortmund's best-ever players, Reus' career was plagued by a number of serious injuries during his time playing at the Westfalenstadion.

Most notably he missed out on Germany's triumphant 2014 World Cup campaign with an ankle ligament tear. 

But, the challenges to remain fit impacted Reus' domestic career too. Despite the Black and Yellow having held a nine point lead in the first part of the 2018-19 season, a groin injury for Reus in February 2019 contributed to a meltdown in the league. 

The midfielder's two-game absence began a downward spiral that eventually led to Bayern Munich winning their seventh consecutive Bundesliga title in 2019.

Having moved this summer to the city where fairytales are created, Reus was determined not to see a repeat of the past but came agonizingly close to yet more déjà vu.

Being forced off at half-time of LA Galaxy's Western Conference final victory over the Seattle Sounders – a de-facto semi-final in Major League Soccer (MLS) - with an abductor problem, playing any part in the final was uncertain.

But, Reus would not be denied his chance to be on the pitch to enjoy a final whistle as a victor. After coming on for the final 15 minutes, Reus lifted his arms in joy as his side defeated the New York Red Bulls 2-1 in front of almost 27,000 jubilant fans.

"If it had been a normal game, I wouldn't have played - not at all," he admitted after the victory. "In the end, I didn’t care [about the injury]."

Edited by: Rana Taha

On December 1, the Bavarian Catholic Archdiocese of Munich-Freising reorganized how it ministers to queer people by creating a nationwide "diocesan network for queer pastoral care," serviced by specially trained care workers.

During the presentation of the new service, Ruth Huber, who heads the archdiocese's administrative center responsible for pastoral care and church life, said this was "another big step" toward the inclusion of queer believers. She said the archdiocese welcomes queer people into the Catholic Church and is trying to create a "safer space" for them within the church.

Until the end of November, St. Paul's Church in Munich presented an exhibition of large-format portraits of 14 queer people — individuals who had been involved in the #OutInChurch initiative, which called for a change in attitude toward queer church employees.

More church services

Munich-Freising is not the first German diocese to offer this kind of pastoral care. Several others, such as those in Freiburg, Trier and Berlin, already have such services. However, Munich-Freising is considered one of Germany's most important archdioceses, as Pope Benedict  XVI (Joseph Ratzinger) was its archbishop from 1977 to 1982.

Since February, Ludger Schepers has been the German Bishops' Conference's Pastoral Commission's representative to the queer community. Schepers, the auxiliary bishop of Essen, told DW that he had already been working for six years in this area of pastoral care for queer people, albeit "without an official mandate."

Schepers said the new network in Munich is a positive step. However, he added that "not every diocese will be able to take on the issue on the same scale as a large archdiocese, such as in Munich or Freiburg."

Schepers believes the dioceses should build networks, and has some suggestions for everyday improvements. "In principle, it is desirable that local church staff become sensitized about their choice of words and ensure that people's concerns are taken seriously. There should be no discrimination," he said.

Fighting discrimination

Less than two years ago, Germany's Catholic Church liberalized its employment law for the approximately 790,000 church employees and Caritas, a Catholic confederation of service organizations, following years of complaints about discrimination.

The liberalization meant the Catholic Church had announced its intention to stop probing the private lives of its employees and to stop dismissing people for entering into a same-sex partnership.  

In the Archdiocese of Munich-Freising, the new pastoral service is intended to offer pastoral care to queer people, as well as to their relatives. Seventeen pastoral carers have qualified for the service.

One of them is Franziska Ilmberger, who works at the Munich University chaplaincy. In an interview with local newspaper, Abendzeitung, she said that being a Christian, for her, means standing up "when people are wronged."

Ilmberger argued that queer people experience much injustice in their lives, and are judged for who they love. She said the message of Jesus is opposed to such discrimination.

Kevin Hellwig, a 29-year-old church employee, is engaged to his same-sex partner. He welcomed the establishment of the new network, calling it "very good.

"We are reaching out to people who have been driven away from the church for decades, and centuries," Hellwig told DW.

He said, however, that the Catholic Church can't expect "that gays and lesbians will come knocking on the church doors." Instead, he believes the Church should go to where LGBTQ+ people are living and working,  and talk to them.

Hellwig feels it is also important that the church takes a stand against those within the Church who have right-wing extremist views, and demonstrate hatred of LGBTQ+ life.

Reform to continue

Auxiliary Bishop Schepers said church members "at the grassroots level" generally seem to be more advanced than the Church establishment when it comes to queer life. 

He emphasized that every single person is a creature of God. "And the way he or she is right now, is simply the way it is [...] there is no such thing as 'more' or 'less' dignity." But Schepers conceded that the new openness at the grassroots level is not enough.

Schepers said the Church's texts "must be reviewed in light of today's insights, in terms of moral theology, and ethics." He feels the Synodal Committee — which promotes dialogue within the Church and convenes every December — should focus on this topic in the near future.

Kevin Hellwig, however, wishes for even more change. For instance, with respect to Catholic sexual morality, "the homosexual act remains a sin. Nothing has changed at all," he argued. Despite the expanded pastoral services, Hellwig finds the unchanged Church's rules "disheartening."

For him, the new network only provides hope for more change. "The Church needs to move much further," he said. Perhaps the new network of pastoral carers will indeed pass along this pressure — to the top.

This article was originally written in German.

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

Alice Weidel belongs to a very small minority. She is one of nine women in the parliamentary party of the far-right Alternative for Germany. Sixty-nine men make up the rest. 

Politically, Weidel is a heavyweight in the male-dominated AfD. She co-chairs both the party and the parliamentary party, together with Tino Chrupalla. Weidel also ran on a joint ticket with Chrupalla in the last federal election in 2021. The result back then was disappointing for the AfD: they won 10.3%, down from 12.6% in 2017.

Record results in regional state elections

Since then, however, the party has gone from strength to strength. In recent state elections, the AfD recorded results between 18.4% in the central German state of Hesse and 32.8% in Thuringia, in eastern Germany. The party, which has been classified as a suspected right-wing extremist group by the country‘s domestic intelligence service (BfV), is currently getting national poll ratings of up to 20%.

Boosted by this success, the AfD leadership has now decided to put forward its own candidate for chancellor in the 2025 federal election, even though they are not expected to have a real chance to head the government. Even if the AfD were to become the party with the most votes, all other parties have rejected the idea of becoming its coalition partners.

Weidel's role model: Margaret Thatcher

The 45-year-old Weidel has a doctorate in economics. In the late 2000s, she worked at the Bank of China and lived in China for six years where she learned to speak Mandarin. She would later write her doctoral thesis on the future of the Chinese pension system. 

Weidel is an admirer of Margaret Thatcher, Britain's prime minister from 1979 to 1990. Speaking of Thatcher in an interview with the tabloid Bild newspaper, she said: "I'm impressed by her biography, her swimming against the tide even when things get unpleasant."

Thatcher was known as the Iron Lady because she stuck to her neoliberal economic line in the face of considerable resistance. She stood for low taxes, welfare cuts and privatization. It's a program that appeals to Weidel, a former management consultant.

"Thatcher took over Britain when the country was economically down and got it back on track," she said in the Bild interview.

'We are trying to reform the EU'

When Weidel joined the AfD in 2013, not long after it had been founded, the party was a euroskeptic and national liberalist party. In her opinion, that has not changed.

"We are trying to reform the EU," she told the newspaper Welt am Sonntag in August.

Weidel said that if reforms failed, then every country had to be given the opportunity to hold a referendum on their membership of the European Union.

In that same interview, Weidel refused to accept that there had been a shift to the right within her party. She even defended Björn Höcke, the leader of the extremist branch of the AfD in the eastern state of Thuringia. Höcke has been convicted several times for repeatedly using Nazi slogans in public.

Yet, Weidel claimed that "he has toned down the very provocative element. He is doing an excellent job in Thuringia. I find the criminal trials ridiculous and dubious."

This is how the AfD top politician talks about a man who, according to a court ruling, can be called a "fascist." What's more, his own party accused him of having "affinities with National Socialism" back in 2017, and Weidel backed moves to expel him at the time. However, the national leadership's application was rejected by a tribunal.

Weidel has openly admitted that she likes to provoke. In 2018, she referred to refugees and asylum-seekers in the Bundestag as "knife-wielding men on welfare" and "headscarf girls." The AfD parliamentary party leader was publicly reprimanded for these comments by the then parliamentary president, Wolfgang Schäuble.

Weidel belongs to the LGBTQ+ community

A few days later, Weidel justified her choice of words in an interview with Switzerland's Neue Zürcher Zeitung. "Polarization is a stylistic device to spark debates," she told the newspaper. By using the term "headscarf girl," she said she wanted to draw attention to the fact that Germany had a problem with conservative Islam. In her opinion, it is incompatible with the country's Basic Law.

Weidel, a provocateur? Someone who may face prejudice in her own ranks because of her private life? Weidel lives in a civil partnership with a woman who originally comes from Sri Lanka. Together, they have two adopted children. That lifestyle is a far cry from the AfD's ideals. In the party's manifesto, the party is committed to the model of the traditional family, one in which "mother and father take permanent joint responsibility for their children."

The AfD's candidate for chancellor, who lives in Germany and Switzerland, in no way embodies her party's worldview. But that's not a problem for Weidel. As she said back in 2017, "one or two people may feel aggrieved, but that also exists in other parties."

This article was originally written in German.

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

Germany likes to promote itself as a nation of culture. But that image is at odds with plans by the cash-strapped state of Berlin to cut arts funding by 12%.

The cuts would affect both world-renowned institutions and independent organizations in the areas of theater, orchestra, cinemas, dance and literature.

The German Culture Council, the umbrella organization for arts associations, has declared that "the golden age for culture is over."

It's a similar situation across the country, with municipalities and federal states increasingly facing financial difficulties. The federal government, an important source of funding, is also holding back. Following the collapse of the coalition government of the Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats, the government has no budget for 2025. These are uncertain times for the arts. So what can arts managers expect?

Less money from the federal government

Until recently, things looked good for arts funding in Germany.

According to the Federal Statistical Office's Cultural Finance Report for 2022, public expenditure has only gone in one direction in recent years: upward. It climbed from €9.3 billion in 2010 to €14.5 billion in 2020, an increase of 55.1%. It will be interesting to see the new figures, which will be published in December.

"Berlin is poor, but sexy" — the aughties-era slogan by former Mayor Klaus Wowereit today sounds like a mockery to the ears of many arts professionals. The Christian Democrat-led Berlin Senate is cutting its budget by €3 billion, with arts spending alone falling by €130 million ($137.4 million).

The cultural scene is reacting with horror. Artists and organizations are up in arms, and culture workers recently mounted a large demonstration at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.

Long list of cuts in Berlin

The cuts are affecting cultural sectors and institutions differently.

Berlin's Schaubühne theater, which faces cuts of €1.8 million, with no compensation for wage increases, fears that it will go bankrupt before 2025, being a limited liability company.

The Berliner Ensemble, facing a cut of €1.75 million, will have to cancel productions. The Volksbühne, which could lose €2 million, fears for its ability to put on performances; as does the Grips youth theater, set to see its budget cut by €300,000; the Theater an der Parkaue for children and youth, which faces a loss of €800,000; and the Deutsches Theater, where a €3 million cut is expected.

Also on the cut list are the Konzerthaus am Gendarmenmarkt, at €1.8 million; the Friedrichstadt-Palast, facing a €1.6 million drop; Berlin cinemas, with a €3.5 million cut projected; the capital's literature houses, at €450,000, and many other institutions. The senate is also stopping the ongoing refurbishment of the Komische Oper (€10 million).

German cultural institutions facing 'huge structural change'

Will this blood-letting cause Berlin to lose its international appeal? Will the once-divided, then reunited city become, as one theater director publicly asked, a "cultural dwarf," even a "soulless shrinking metropolis"?

In view of the economic and financial situation and the resulting drop in arts funding, Dorothea Gregor, cultural expert at the Liz Mohn Foundation, told DW that German theaters and cultural institutions are facing "a huge structural change."

Gregor said many theaters "take it too much for granted that money will continue to flow as before," and added that artistic directors need to figure out how they can run their theaters more efficiently while still delivering top quality. She said entrepreneurial thinking was required, including when it comes to finding new funding options.

'What value do art and culture have?'

Lutz Hillmann is director of the Deutsch-Sorbisches Volkstheater in Bautzen, Saxony, and the state chairman of the German Stage Association. He has been observing the debate over cuts in Berlin with a certain helplessness.

The eastern state of Saxony also faces a critical budget situation, with serious consequences for the cultural landscape of museums, theaters and orchestras. Hillmann said the theaters in Zwickau, Freiberg, Annaberg-Buchholz, Görlitz-Zittau and even Chemnitz — which will be a European Capital of Culture in 2025 — fear for their existence.

"What value do art and culture have?" said Hillmann. "If politicians decide that the arts are not so important in the context of all the federal, state, city and municipal tasks, then that will have an effect!" 

Theaters and orchestras, for example, have long since ceased to fulfill only traditional functions such as performances in a permanent venue, he said. "We are social meeting places, we do work with children and young people, we go out into the public arena, we network." 

Hillmann emphasized that cultural offerings are particularly important in rural areas. "If we don't keep this in mind," he warned, "we will have even more disastrous election results because people will become increasingly dissatisfied."

Culture helps promote democratic discourse

Olaf Zimmermann, managing director of the German Cultural Council, takes the same line. "Right now, cultural venues are urgently needed to debate current issues, to offer places for democratic discourse, to stimulate reflection or simply to create cohesion," Zimmermann wrote in the most recent issue of the association's publication.

"Cuts to institutions will also have an impact on the independent scene and the arts and creative industries," the association warned. From Cologne to Dresden, there is a threat of cuts to arts budgets that will be deeply felt.

Zimmermann emphasized that tight budgets must not signal the end of important projects such as introducing minimum pay for artists, digitization or improving the environmental sustainability of the arts sector.

Arts, culture alienated from each other

Gregor, from the Liz Mohn Foundation, said there was a lack of communication between cultural institutions and their donors, even a downright "alienation." She said it was important for both sides to sit down together and discuss the next steps as equals. "We are in the same boat," said Gregor, "there is no one, not even in Berlin, who says we no longer need the arts."

According to the Cultural Relevance Monitor conducted by the Liz Mohn Foundation, 91% of people in Germany want arts offerings, such as theaters, to be preserved for future generations because they are part of the country's cultural identity. Three-quarters of respondents also felt that arts offerings should continue to be supported with public funds.

Nowhere in the world, said Gregor, is the density of theaters, orchestras and opera houses higher than in Germany. "When I go to the theater," she said, "it's the best way to see my tax money at work."

This article was originally written in German.

Germany is bracing for digital threats in the run-up to the general election.

With the country expected to elect a new parliament on February 23, authorities and researchers are raising concerns about the potential impact of hack-and-leak operations and disinformation campaigns aimed at swaying public opinion or sowing division ahead of the vote. 

In a recent analysis, Germany's domestic intelligence agency warned of "attempts by foreign states to exert influence."

This warning was echoed by Claudia Plattner, the president of Germany's cybersecurity agency, the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), who told reporters that "there are forces inside and outside Germany that have an interest in attacking the election process and disrupting the democratic order." 

The snap election, held under a compressed timeline, not only poses logistical challenges for authorities — it also comes at a time of heightened political tensions. 

"There are various issues, from the economy to the geopolitical situation, that are dividing society," Josef Lentsch, the CEO of the Political Tech Summit conference, which will take place in Berlin at the end of January, told DW. 

"Populists and extremists are particularly good at exploiting these social divides," he said. 

A threat from outside and within 

Cyberattacks on prominent individuals and organizations may pose a significant threat to the election, experts say. Once obtained, sensitive data can be used in coordinated "hack-and-leak" operations, in which stolen material — often altered or taken out of context — is released to undermine the credibility of political candidates or parties. 

"Against the backdrop of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Russia probably has the greatest and most obvious interest in influencing the election in its own favor," Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), warned in late November. 

But domestic actors operating from within Germany pose an equally significant risk to the integrity of the election, Lentsch said.   

"The public sphere has evolved," he said. "Anti-democratic actors are now using channels on messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram, as well as social media platforms like TikTok, to circumvent the filtering functions of traditional media and other trusted entities." 

Both extremist fringe actors and parties such as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) have spent years building this "alternative digital infrastructure," Lentsch said. "As a result, they now have almost a decade's head start over other actors, such as the established parties." 

Lessons from Romania 

The political firepower of this kind of digital infrastructure was demonstrated in the first round of Romania's presidential election, with the surprise victory of nationalist Calin Georgescu, a far-right admirer of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

On Friday, December 6, Romania's Constitutional Court annulled the results after President Klaus Iohannis had declassified security documents. The documents alleged that Russia had run a campaign involving thousands of social media accounts on platforms such as TikTok and Telegram to promote Georgescu.

"Romania is an EU country. What happened there can happen elsewhere, including in Germany," Lentsch said.  

The rise of 'AI propaganda' 

In Germany, no party has built a larger "digital infrastructure" to push its narratives than the AfD, Katja Munoz, a research fellow at the Center for Geopolitics, Geoeconomics and Technology at the Berlin-based think tank German Council on Foreign Relations, told DW.  

Within this network, multiple social media accounts interact with each other to prompt the platforms' algorithms to amplify the reach of posts, Munoz said: "It's an orchestrated move to push the same narrative."  

At the same time, new so-called generative AI programs allow parties and individuals to create posts — from text to images and even video — much faster than before. Officials from across the political spectrum have begun using the technology to create illustrations for social media posts, for example. 

And yet "in Germany, we see that the party that spreads by far the most AI-generated content is the AfD," Munoz said, referring to an analysis she conducted around the European elections, as well as regional elections in 2024.  

"This content is not necessarily false, but it's misleading and meant to confirm existing beliefs — it's AI propaganda," she said, citing the example of a 78-second AI-generated video released by the AfD in September, just days before a regional election. The clip depicted scenarios in which people who were mostly blond and blue-eyed were contrasted with people of color, who were shown in negative contexts. 

Protecting the vote 

A multipronged approach is needed to protect the integrity of Germany's campaign and election, experts say. 

To counter cyberattacks, the BfV has formed a special task force to monitor threats. The cybersecurity agency BSI is offering online seminars to candidates and parties to help them secure their devices and online accounts against cyber intruders. 

"Normally we would have liked to do this on site and in person, but now we have to switch to webinars simply because we don't have as much time to prepare as we thought," BSI President Plattner told the public broadcaster Deutschlandradio. 

With only about two and a half months remaining until the expected elections, Lentsch said: "It is all the more important that civil society, political actors and state authorities engage in dialogue, especially as the period leading up to the elections has shortened." 

Munoz said authorities should also step up efforts to raise awareness about disinformation and AI-generated propaganda: "Officials should explain to people how public opinion is being manipulated and how fringe views are being pushed to the center of the debate." 

Edited by: Rina Goldenberg

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The international mission in Afghanistan lasted 20 years. Under the leadership of the US, Germany was also involved from the very beginning — both in a military and in a humanitarian capacity.

The mission came to an abrupt end on August 15, 2021, when the Taliban captured the presidential palace in Kabul. 

Nobody in the German government, including Chancellor Angela Merkel, apparently saw the Islamists' rapid triumph coming. The evacuation of both German citizens and Afghan personnel was chaotic.

Since 2022, a committee of inquiry in the Lower House of Parliament, the Bundestag has been trying to find out how this misjudgment came about. As the last witness, the former head of government has to answer several hours of questions from lawmakers.  

Reading from a prepared statement, Merkel said Germany's participation in the US-led military invasion of Afghanistan was the correct decision even in retrospect. She repeated some of the phrases she used in a government statement just a few days after the Taliban's triumph.

Merkel said there had been a "well-founded hope" that the military intervention would prevent terrorist attacks from being planned in Afghanistan.

She acknowledged that foreign governments had failed in Afghanistan on nearly every objective, from encouraging the rule of law to women's rights issues.

Merkel said a lack of cultural understanding by Afghanistan's Western allies, nepotism and drug trafficking were reasons for the failures.

Merkel says that initially, she was more reluctant to include local personnel from the field of development cooperation. In doing so, she wanted to avoid giving the impression that Germany was abandoning Afghanistan.

Merkel's account is consistent with the testimony of her confidant at the time, Helge Braun, who coordinated the German government's Afghanistan policy in the Chancellery. Braun was questioned directly before Merkel in the committee of inquiry and also defended the Federal Intelligence Service (BND). The BND had considered a rapid takeover of power by the Taliban to be “rather unlikely”.

The Bundestag's committee of inquiry has been looking into decision-making procedures and actions of the German government and intelligence services, including the interaction with foreign actors.

It will have to present its final report before this legislative period ends in February 2025. 

'Transparent and thorough'

Merkel-era Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Development Minister Gerd Müller were among the last officials of the time to be questioned. Even right before the Taliban marched unopposed into the Afghan capital, Maas, of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), had claimed that such a scenario was very unlikely.

"All of us — the German government, the intelligence services, the international community — we all misjudged the situation," he said later.

Now, three years later, the inquiry committee asked Maas for his assessment of the German government's policy in Afghanistan. "The cooperation within the government was very transparent and thorough," Maas said.

Maas acknowledged that, on some specific factual issues, there were different interpretations.

"But everyone tried to make the best of the situation," Maas said. He added that issuing visas for Afghan personnel who feared Taliban revenge could have been handled better. "It may have been possible to get a lot of people out earlier if an agreement had been reached more quickly," Maas surmised.

This article was originally written in German. It was updated following former Chancellor Angela Merkel's testimony on December 5, 2024.

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Since the start of Russia's war on Ukraine, Germany has sent a great number of lightweight weapons and equipment to Kyiv. When it came to heavy weapons such as battle tanks, Chancellor Olaf Scholz was long hesitant, yet Ukraine has long since received these too.

It is the Taurus lang-range cruise missile system, however, that they are still waiting on. Unlike the US, the UK, and France, which have delivered similar guided weapons to Ukraine and expressly allowed them to attack targets in Russia, Scholz has drawn the line at the Taurus.

Here is a list of weapons that Germany has delivered so far (figures on numbers of units delivered according to Statista, as of November 2024)

Leopard 2 and Leopard 1 battle tanks

The Leopard 2 is a showpiece of German military production. It has been in serial production since 1978 and has been improved many times since then. These tanks are not due to be replaced by Germany's Bundeswehr armed forces by at least 2030. Due to the great success of the tank in export markets, its manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann has created many different versions, each of which has been adapted to the specific requirements of the buyer. Its predecessor model, the Leopard 1, has also sold very well and continues to be used by many armies around the world.

It is designed to defend against enemy tank convoys. The Leopard 2 has a 120 mm (4.72 inches) cannon, which can be used to attack stationary or moving targets while moving. The cannon remains pointed at the target even when driving on uneven terrain. Additional attachments allow the Leopard to drive through water up to 4 meters (13 feet) deep. The 1500-horsepower tank, which can travel at more than 60 kilometers per hour (38 mph), is a heavyweight. At more than 60 tons, bridges always pose a problem. The German government has so far supplied Ukraine with 18 of the new Leopard 2 tanks and 88 of the older Leopard 1s.

Marder infantry fighting vehicles

Infantry fighting vehicles carry infantry troops into battle, provide them with fire support, and allow gunners to fire from them. That is why it is a versatile weapon system. The Marder has room for six or seven gunners. It has a 20 mm automatic cannon and can also include Milan-guided missiles for use against ground and air targets. It has a protective ventilation system to protect against nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, and can navigate through water up to two meters deep thanks to submersible hydraulics.

Commissioned in 1971, the Marder is even older than the Gepard and is in the process of being replaced in Germany by its successor, the Puma. Despite this, the Bundeswehr and many other armies continue to use the Marder and it has proven reliable in Kosovo and Afghanistan. This is due to the continuous improvements made to the tank, known in military jargon as combat upgrades. Number of units delivered to date: 140.

Gepard "cheetah" self-propelled anti-aircraft tank

The Gepard has twin 35 mm cannons. It is used against aircraft and helicopters at altitudes of up to 3500 m, but also against lightly armored ground targets such as infantry fighting vehicles and armored transport vehicles. This illustrates how the Gepard can be used as both a defensive and offensive weapon.

Launched in 1976, the Gepard was long a cornerstone of the Bundeswehr's air defense system, as well as that of the Dutch and Belgian armies. However, the Gepard was decommissioned in those countries around 20 years ago, while the last one was retired in Germany in 2012. Romania is the only NATO country still using the Gepard. The 55 German models supplied to Ukraine so far had to first be made operational again.

The self-propelled Howitzer Panzerhaubitze 2000

It is an armored, self-propelled 155 mm caliber artillery gun. The 60 shells stored in the ammunition magazine can be fired at a rate of three rounds in ten seconds. It can

destroy targets at a distance of 40 km. The companies Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall delivered the first howitzers to the Bundeswehr in 1998 and continue to manufacture the model in a modified form.

Unlike the Leopard battle tank, the Panzerhaubitze 2000 must remain stationary to fire, making it clearly inferior to a battle tank in a direct face-off. However, it can immediately move to a new camouflage position after firing, thus avoiding return fire. It is designed to accompany motorized units and provide them with fire support.

The howitzer was successfully deployed in Afghanistan in 2006 and 2007 in conjunction with air support. To date, Ukraine has received 24 howitzers from Germany.

Patriot air defense system

The Patriot air defense missile system from US manufacturers Raytheon and Lockheed is designed to engage aircraft, tactical missiles, and cruise missiles. This ground-based anti-aircraft missile system can engage up to five targets simultaneously at a range of up to 68 kilometers. The defensive missiles are fired from a truck and reach four times the speed of sound. Since its introduction in 1984, the Patriot has been used by many armed forces, including the German Bundeswehr. The first use of the Patriot in a combat zone was by the US during the Second Gulf War against Iraq in 1991.

The Patriot is expensive. A single system without missiles costs several hundred million US dollars, with each individual defensive missile costing an additional three to eight million dollars. Because of the high price of the missiles, it is only worthwhile using them against so-called high-value targets: using them against combat drones, for example, would be a waste of money. So far, three units have been delivered to Ukraine.

IRIS-T air defense system

The IRIS-T is a ground-based mobile (truck-mounted) air defense missile system from the German manufacturer Diehl, but with multinational cooperation. The IRIS-T is a

relatively new system. It was only first operational in 2022, the year the war in Ukraine began. It can intercept missiles at a range of 40 kilometers. The system is used to defend against helicopters, aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles such as drones, cruise missiles, and short-range missiles.

One advantage of IRIS-T is its high mobility: all components are mounted on standardized 20-foot containers and can therefore be transported by truck, rail, ship, and even by transport aircraft such as the C-130 Hercules or the military Airbus A400M. So far, nine systems have been delivered to Ukraine.

Vector reconnaissance drone

Drones are increasingly playing a role in Russia's war against Ukraine. But while Russia and Ukraine are using combat drones against each other, Germany is supplying Ukraine with reconnaissance drones, such as the Vector. Manufactured in Germany by Quantum Systems, the drone is a fixed-wing aircraft with a wingspan of just under three meters, three rotors, and a fuselage made of carbon fiber-reinforced plastic.

The reconnaissance drone can stay in the air for up to two hours and photograph an area of 700 hectares. So far, Ukraine has received 368 of these drones from Germany.

Rocket launchers 'Stinger' 

The Stinger is a shoulder-fired, infrared-guided surface-to-air missile launcher that was originally manufactured by Raytheon in the US in 1980, but has also long been produced in Europe, including in Germany. Once it has locked on to its target, such as a fighter plane or helicopter, and is fired, the missile can automatically track its target at a range of about 4,000 meters. The warhead explodes with a slight time delay after impact, usually hitting the fuel tank, thus maximizing damage.

Stingers have proven to be extremely effective and easy to use. Most notably, the US supplied them to Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation, and Afghan fighters used them to shoot down numerous Soviet airplanes and helicopters. Kyiv has received 500 Stingers from Germany since the beginning of the war.

The 'Panzerfaust'

Manufactured in Germany by Dynamit Nobel since 1992,

the standard Panzerfaust 3 is used by the German armed forces and other national armies for anti-tank defense. It is fired from the shoulder at stationary targets up to 400 meters away and at moving targets up to 300 meters away. It can penetrate up to 300 mm of armored steel and, as a bunker buster when equipped with other ammunition, up to 240 mm of reinforced concrete.

According to the German government, Germany supplied Ukraine with several thousand Panzerfausts at the beginning of the war.

This article was originally written in German. It was first published in September 2023 and has been updated to reflect the latest developments.

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

In April 2024, hundreds of police officers raided homes and offices in 11 countries and arrested several individuals linked to JuicyFields, a company initially based in Berlin.

JuicyFields had promised huge returns to those willing to invest in medical cannabis through its website. Almost 200,000 people did so and became victims of a scam. Prosecutors estimate the damage to be around €645 million ($678 million).

DW's Cannabis Cowboys podcast was early to investigate the scam and has received numerous awards since the final episode was published in March 2023.

A network of investigative journalists in several European countries has now further investigated the case. Their findings were published by Danish public broadcaster DR, Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladed, Austrian newspaper Der Standard, and in Germany by the magazine Der Spiegel, online publication Correctiv.org, and public TV station ZDF.

New findings raise more questions in JuicyFields case

The new research appears to confirm the story as told by DW. It also adds new findings that make the JuicyFields saga even stranger than it already was.

Journalist Kevin Shakir from DR, for example, managed to get in touch with the man suspected to be the mastermind behind JuicyFields. Sergej B., a Russian national, was arrested in April 2024 in the Dominican Republic and is set to be tried later in Spain.

According to Shakir's research, a network surrounding Sergej B. had set up two other major fraud cases before JuicyFields. One involved waste recycling, the other a cryptocurrency. Each time, a lot of people lost a lot of money. Shakir tells the story of Sergej B. in "The Phantom from Russia", a five-part podcast series in Danish.

"When you're able to launch such big projects with that much marketing, when you're able to disappear again and again from alleged scams, when you're able to move cryptocurrency in big amounts and sophisticated ways," Shakir told DW. "The question remains: is this guy [Sergej B.] acting alone or is he part of something bigger than himself?

Was the Russian state involved?

Gabriela Keller from the investigative online publication correctiv.org was intrigued by the same question. Many experts on Russia say scams on the scale of JuicyFields require political protection.

Keller said the investigation did not provide 100% proof that the Russian state was involved. But some of her findings suggest there is at least a connection.

For example, a Russian member of JuicyFields' inner circle, Vitaly M., was registered in Berlin under the same address as the official cultural embassy of the Russian state, an institution called the Russian House of Science and Culture.

"The fact that he was registered at the Russian House could indicate that he had helpers there," Keller told DW. "Because you either need a rental contract or a confirmation by the landlord when you register your address at the registration office."

The Russian House denied they had anything to do with Vitaly M. and said he must have forged papers or given false information at the residency registration office.

Back in April, Vitaly M. escaped arrest. He now lives in Russia, where he seems to run a company that manufactures drones, Keller told DW. "The website currently displays the coat of arms of the Russian Ministry of Defense, along with the slogan: 'Victory will be ours'." Keller's full report can be found here (in German).

A Swedish lawyer and his claims

Two investigative reporters at Svenska Dagbladet focused their investigation on a man who was never a member of JuicyFields, but whose name is closely linked to the case: Lars Olofsson, a Swedish lawyer.

After JuicyFields folded in the summer of 2022 and thousands of investors were left stranded, Olofsson announced that he could help victims get their money back.

Instead of waiting for the scammers behind JuicyFields to be convicted, Olofsson announced he would file class action lawsuits against all those who made the scam possible, including Facebook, where the company advertised, and banks that passed on investors' money to JuicyFields.

To become part of the class action suits, defrauded investors had to pay a fee to Olofsson. Initially, it was €100, later 150. Several thousand people signed up.

Frida Svensson and Erik Wisterberg have put Lars Olofsson under the microscope — with surprising results. They tell his story in a four-part podcast called "The Savior". The podcast is in Swedish and an online article about their findings is available in English.

"[Olofsson] markets himself as a super lawyer with 15 years of experience investigating international fraud and scams. He claims he's a former Navy Seal and that he worked in the Swedish military intelligence service," Wisterberg told DW. "But nothing of this is true."

"His real background involves serving time in prison for economic crimes. It also involves this year being put on trial again — which his clients didn't know about at all," Wisterberg added.

When will prosecutors file charges?

The Swedish journalists said they could prove their allegations with documents and that they had confronted Olofsson with their findings.

DW also reached out to Olofsson and asked him for comment. He replied but did not address any of the topics he was asked about. Instead, he wrote that journalists could not be trusted and said he got many new clients after "The Savior" podcast launched in Sweden.

In the podcast, Olofsson is portrayed as a soldier of fortune hoping to profit from a scam. He raked in considerable sums in sign-up fees from defrauded investors, while the legal proceedings he initiated concerning JuicyFields were rejected by Swedish courts.

Public prosecutors in Berlin, Madrid and elsewhere are currently evaluating the material confiscated during the raids in April 2024. They are yet to file charges.

Edited by: Nik Martin

Germany's benchmark blue-chip stock index topped 20,000 points for the first time during trading on Tuesday morning, hitting the historic mark shortly after opening.

The DAX, which is made up of 40 large publicly traded German corporations, has been hovering around the 19,000 mark recently but has surged towards 20,000 over the past week despite a continuing raft of grim data about the German economy overall.

The trend is a rare piece of positive news out of Europe's biggest economy as of late. Germany narrowly avoided recession for the third quarter of the year, but the latest data suggests a winter recession is inevitable in the new year. Added to that is bad news on the jobs front, with a wave of industrial job cuts recently announced at iconic firms such as Thyssenkrupp and Bosch.

Then there's the serious struggles at carmaker Volkswagen, where job losses and plant closures have been in the offing for months.

Infighting in the country's three-party ruling coalition over how to deal with the country's severe economic malaise led to the collapse of the government recently, with snap elections slated for February.

DAX has little exposure to Germany

Like elsewhere, Germany has been plagued by high inflation in recent years, leaving consumers strapped for cash. Industrial orders and production in the export nation have also fallen, and surveys show German companies are increasingly pessimistic about the future.

"Looking ahead, there is very little reason to expect any imminent change for the economy," Carsten Brzeski at ING Bank said last week. "In fact, the expected economic policies of the incoming US administration as well as continued policy uncertainty as a result of the German government’s collapse are likely to weigh on sentiment in Germany." 

So why the investor optimism?

"Ironically, I think there's a strong argument to make for an inverse correlation between economic performance and stock market performance," Ben Ritchie, head of developed market equities at investment company abrdn, told DW earlier this year, when the DAX also broke new ground despite weak overall economic data.

"The revenues for these companies aren't in Germany," Ritchie said. "So the German economy doesn't matter."

SMEs don't share the optimism

Retail customers and production sites for these large, international companies are primarily located outside of Germany. Experts such as Ritchie say the health of those markets, along with structural developments within specific industries and companies, has a far greater influence on DAX performance than the domestic economy does.

However many argue that this is not the case for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Germany, which employ over 50% of the country's workforce but aren't represented in the DAX index.

As a result, their fortunes are much more tied to the domestic economy and its problems with rising costs and other structural challenges. 

It's one of the reasons why business morale fell more than expected in Germany according to a survey released on November 25 by the country's Ifo Institute. "The reading confirms that the German economy remains in the doldrums," Franziska Palmas, senior Europe economist at Capital Economics, said about the business sentiment figure.

Weak economy could be a strength for equities

The strength of the US economy is probably more significant to the DAX's current streak than Germany's. High coronavirus relief spending and low energy costs there have helped boost consumer spending over the past 18 months.

However that has not been mirrored in Germany where consumer spending remains moribund, despite a significant cooling of inflation.

Yet some experts have suggested a sluggish domestic economy could ultimately be a good thing for stocks.

For Germany's largest companies, a weak German economy can lead to a cheaper euro as well as lower borrowing costs as the ECB tries to stimulate spending in Europe — which it is currently trying to do with a series of interest rate cuts. At the same time, stagnation would have little impact on revenues due to their large overseas markets.

Edited by: Arthur Sullivan

Editor's note: The article, originally published on February 29, 2024, was updated on December 3, 2024 to reflect that the German DAX has breached the 20,000 mark.

Years after winning gold medals at the  Paralympics and various World Championship titles, Heinrich Popow believes the future for disabled people is brighter than it has ever been, thanks in part to the success and growing popularity of the Paralympics. But there is one particular societal issue the lower leg amputee would like to see change: Adults should view people with disabilities through the same eyes and curiosity as children. 

"The biggest change I would love to see is to break the barriers of having this, we call it in German, Berührungsangst, being afraid to come too close," Popow told DW. "The way that kids interact with people with a disability, and also with stuff they see for the first time. That is what I would like to see adults do.

"So when I, for example, go to Kindergarten with shorts in the summer, I'm the coolest daddy in the world because kids accept me. And then they ask me, 'What do you have?' So I explain. And because my two daughters, always put some new stickers on my legs, every day I have a different leg.

"What I really would love to see is that we accept each other the way we are and learn from kids."

One of Germany's greatest para athletes

Popow maintains that the amputation of his lower leg was tougher on his parents than on his 9-year-old self. He stayed active in sports, and eventually settled on athletics at the sports club, Bayer Leverkusen. In 2002, at age 19, Popow won a bronze medal at the International Paralympics Committee World Athletics Championships in Lille, France. Three bronze medals in the T42 category followed at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, a silver in Beijing 2008, and a gold medal in the 100-meters in London Paralympics. He won gold in the long jump in the 2016 Games in Rio. "Sports gave me the opportunity to push barriers and limits," said Popow. And it still does. 

In addition to pushing and prodding those who may be newly disabled toward sport these days, he actively promotes and defends people with disabilities in Germany and around the world. He is often seen in clinics and other engagement opportunities for the mobility firm, Ottobock (which employs him), which focuses on, among other things, prosthetics for those who have had amputations, injuries, or neurological diseases. 

Inclusivity breeds success

Popow's travels have led him to believe that countries that do well at the Paralympics usually do well with the inclusivity of the disabled back at home. Germany finished a disappointing 11th in the 2024 Paralympics medals table. Popow believes he has a clue why. 

 "Grassroot sports in Germany are not improving the way they need to improve," he told DW. Federal government research in 2022 suggested more than half of disabled people in Germany avoided sports. Part of the reason could be that 90% of all playing fields and gymnasiums were not barrier-free.  Meanwhile, insurance companies often do not cover medical devices for sports. 

"I feel the government and insurers can save a lot of money if they realize paying for disabled sports is better than the bill from a pharmacy. Sports is the best medicine.

"I  do running clinics, and I see activity all over the world. The Netherlands is doing a great job.  It is the size of the German state of North Rhine Westfalia, and it is more successful than our whole country." The Netherlands was 4th in the 2024 Paralympics medal table. 

Does the International Day of Persons with Disabilities help?

Popow is an avowed booster for the disabled. He is sure that the one day of the year set aside by the UN to promote the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities is positive in ways that go far beyond simple awareness. "I forget the day of my marriage sometimes," he joked. "But this UN day becomes more and more special."

Yet he acknowledges that having lived with his disability since 1992 (he was nine when a rare form of cancer in his left calf led to his lower leg being amputated), the day personally matters less to him than it previously did. Those who are recently disabled see things much differently, and the acknowledgment of that fact is important, he said. 

"I have no restrictions from my disability in my daily life. It is packed with kids, job, and everything, but no further movement is important." 

"But to be honest, and this is something also the (disability) community thinks about, it's more important if we think about disabilities every day, like the awareness we should have every day. A special day is nice, but it is only one step. We need that second and third day," he says. 

And beyond.

Edited by: Matt Pearson 

A fourth round of negotiations between German car manufacturer Volkswagen and workers' unions began on Monday against a backdrop of renewed rolling strikes and with little sign of an agreement in sight.

Following a sharp drop in profits caused by increasing costs at home and competition from abroad, particularly from China, Volkswagen is looking to make wide-ranging cuts, including redundancies, wage reductions and even factory closures.

"We need cost reductions that can be implemented in the short term and are sustainable," said the company's lead negotiator, Arne Meiswinkel.

"This is the only way we can remain competitive in a challenging environment."

Unions 'furious and stunned'

But trade unions are angry at what they see as workers paying the price for executive mismanagement and took their members out on strike at nine plants across Germany for the second time this month.

"Instead of intelligent solutions, they offer only mass layoffs and job cuts," said Christiane Benner, chairwoman of the IG Metall union, adding that she was "furious and stunned" at Volkswagen's actions so far.

"The problems are huge," she said, addressing tens of thousands of workers outside the flagship VW plant in Wolfsburg, 90 kilometers (56 miles) east of Hannover in northern Germany.

"But they can't be solved with closures, redundancies and wage cuts. The blame for the crisis does not lie with the employees, but with the many bad decisions made by the management."

Volkswagen threatening 10% wage cuts

The union is demanding that all 10 Volkswagen plants in Germany remain open and that approximately 130,000 employees receive guarantees of employment.

Whereas the previous round of strikes on December 2 lasted for two hours, Monday's walkouts lasted twice as long.

In November, IG Metall had offered to forgo salary increases in a move that it said would save Volkswagen around €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion).

But Meiswinkel said the offer was "not yet sufficient for a sustainable solution" and the company is continuing to demand 10% across-the-board pay cuts.

IG Metall regional secretary Thorsten Gröger called on management to show a greater willingness to compromise, otherwise promising "an escalation the likes of which this company has never seen before."

mf/rc (dpa, AFP)

While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.

The workers' union of German carmaker Volkswagen (VW) said on Thursday that its workers would go on extended strikes next week, starting on Monday.

Europe's largest carmaker has faced backlash over its plans to cut wages, layoff workers and close factories for the first time ever in Germany.

The IG Metall union said the strike on Monday would last four hours at nine different sites across the country and on the same day that a fourth round of negotiations between VW and labor representatives will take place.

Thousands of VW employees are also expected to attend a rally on Monday in Wolfsburg, where VW is headquartered.

The planned duration of the work stoppage is twice as long as the first round that they staged this previous Monday, when nearly 100,000 VW factory workers participated.

The company said on Thursday said the management and labor representatives were still engaging in discussions over viable, long-term solutions that balance economic stability and secure employment prospects.

'Layoffs under the Christmas tree'

But the back and forth between the company and labor representatives in public has been far from amicable.

CEO Oliver Blume on Wednesday defended the belt tightening at VW as necessary in a rapidly changing environment, saying management could not operate "in a fantasy world."

IG Metall negotiator Thorsten Gröger responded to Blume's remarks on Thursday. 

"It borders on mockery when Oliver Blume stands in front of the workforce and wishes them a Merry Christmas, while at the same time, the VW board would prefer to put letters of termination under the Christmas tree for the employees," Gröger said.

"We will now step up our efforts on December 9th and thus increase the pressure on the company at the negotiating table," Gröger said in a statement.

Volkswagen has been affected by high manufacturing costs at home, a sluggish shift to electric vehicles and stiff competition from China.

jcg/ab (AP, Reuters)

They were just a trickle first, but then hundreds of workers at VW's factory in Hanover, Germany, came walking out of Gate 3 in large swaths, waving signs reading "We are ready for strike!" and the red flags of Germany's powerful metalworkers' union, IG Metall.

The Hanover plant is where VW produces light commercial vehicles, including VW's electric minibus, ID.Buzz, which is the successor to the company's iconic "Bulli" — short for bus and delivery van in German —  which had been rolling off the assembly line for more than 65 years, but is now produced in Turkey.

VW workers in Hanover are joining in a strike that is hitting almost all VW plants in Germany.

"For me the most important thing is that they keep this production site," says Hassan Savas, who's been working for VW for 24 years and is now joining in a crowd of workers rallying at the local market square. "They should abolish bonus payments. Oliver Blume made 10.3 million euros and what do we get?," he told DW.

What Hassan Savas is so angry about is a decision by VW's management, including CEO Oliver Blume, to close several VW plants in Germany and lay off thousands of workers. The move is unprecedented in the carmaker's more than 87 years of history, and comes after it had scrapped a job security agreement with labor unions earlier this year that had ruled out dismissals until 2029.

Moritz, a second-year apprentice at the plant who doesn't want to see his full name published, says a lot of VW workers are "really angry."

"Apprentices should get more money and should receive contracts after their training, but that‘s both at stake," he told DW.

Why are VW workers going on strike?

While workers at VW's factory in Osnabrück, Germany, have secured a seperate bargaining agreement and don't participate in the strike, the rest of VW's workforce in Germany is still hoping for a new deal.

In a recent round of wage negotitions, VW workers have offered  to back €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) in cost savings if management rules out closing plants in Germany, but warned the automaker would face an historic battle if it pressed ahead with swingeing cuts.

VW management is pushing for wage cuts of up to 10% to lower costs in the wake of dwindling revenues. Europe's biggest carmaker also wants to close three plants to reflect falling demand, especially for its electric vehicles (EVs). 

The IG Metall union announced over the weekend that industrial action would get underway Monday with a series of "warning strikes," which are short walkouts, after the company had last week rejected the union's proposals for protecting jobs.

VW Group, which owns 10 brands from Audi and Porsche to Skoda and Seat, said in a statement it "respects workers' rights" and believes in "constructive dialogue" in a bid to reach "a lasting solution that is collectively supported." It also said that it had taken "measures to guarantee urgent deliveries" during the strike action.

Collective bargaining negotiations are said to resume on December 9th, with the workers rallying in Hanover saying the are supporting the labor union's calls for the "most massive strike action VW has ever seen."

Why is Germany's car industry so important?

The walkouts at VW come as Germany's all-powerful auto industry is facing a crisis amid declining European demand and tough competition from China. With the Wolfsburg-based auto manufacturer being Germany's biggest industrial employer, a crisis at VW has nationwide repercussions.

In 2023, nearly 780,000 people were employed in the German automobile industry, according to the German Association of the Automotive Industry, with more than 465,000 jobs supplying parts and equipment to the biggest carmakers, including VW, BMW and Mercedes.

The share of the automobile industry to Germany's gross domestic product (GDP) is bigger than in any other European country.

The slowdown in German auto production, meanwhile, has reached manufacturers beyond VW. Premium carmaker Mercedes, for example, is planning to cut costs of several billion euros. Tire maker Continental will be laying off 7,150 workers worldwide, and electronic-parts supplier Bosch plans to cut up to 5,550 jobs.

US auto giant Ford  also announced it would reduce its workforce in Germany by 2,900 workers, while 14,000 jobs are at risk at supplier ZF, and 4,700 at Schaeffler Group, another important auto-industry supplier.

Edited by: Uwe Hessler