Germany | GlobalPost

Merkel raises eyebrows by raising religion

Mary Beth WarnerNovember 27, 2012 07:00

BERLIN — When Barack Obama traveled to the eastern city of Dresden with Angela Merkel in 2009, they stopped at the Frauenkirche, or Church of Our Lady, a towering landmark rebuilt after German reunification. During their visit, the US president and his German counterpart sat together in quiet prayer — something Germans wouldn’t know because photographs of that moment didn’t appear in the press here. That’s because images of politicians praying are rare in Germany’s largely secular society and Merkel has rarely discussed her faith — until this month.

EU leaders arrive in Brussels to hammer out tough budget deal

Alexander BesantNovember 22, 2012 16:37

European leaders arrived in Brussels on Thursday to begin talks over the EU budget.

Merkel unveils Roma Holocaust memorial

Siobhan DowlingOctober 24, 2012 13:52

BERLIN — Almost 70 years after the end of World War II, Germany has unveiled a memorial to the up to half-a-million Roma and related Sinti people murdered by the Nazis. However, Roma and Sinti representatives say the memorial should also serve as a warning about ongoing discrimination across the continent today.

Another German minister caught in plagiarism scandal

Siobhan DowlingOctober 20, 2012 06:45

BERLIN — A close ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s is under fierce pressure over claims she plagiarized her doctoral thesis more than 30 years ago. Annette Schavan’s role as education minister, in which she oversees the country’s universities, makes the accusations especially damaging. Opposition politicians have called on her to resign, saying her reputation is in tatters after the leaking of a report from the University of Duesseldorf appeared to back up the allegations.

Germany: Merkel challenger prepares for tough campaign

Siobhan DowlingOctober 17, 2012 06:22

BERLIN — When the collapse of Lehman Brothers threatened to set off a global depression in 2008, Peer Steinbrueck stood shoulder to shoulder with Chancellor Angela Merkel to steer his country through the financial crisis. He did a remarkable job. Now the former finance minister who was once her right-hand man has a new challenge: to unseat Merkel in an election next year.

EADS and BAE in final hours of talks over possible merger

Alexander BesantOctober 9, 2012 17:10

The two firms have been in discussions since early September about the possible merger — a deal that would create the largest defence and aerospace company in the world.

European companies squeeze US over death penalty

Siobhan DowlingOctober 9, 2012 06:15

BERLIN — Although the European Union calls for the abolition of all capital punishment, several European companies have unwittingly become accomplices of executions by manufacturing drugs used in lethal injections in the United States. Some are now seeking ways to prevent their products from being used to carry out the death penalty.

In-depth series: Germany and the euro debt crisis

News DeskAugust 29, 2012 18:05

GlobalPost takes a look at what people are thinking in the country that will decide the future of the euro — and why.

Zoo director executes killer tiger with high-powered rifle

Alexander BesantAugust 25, 2012 14:25

A tiger escaped its enclosure in a German zoo and killed a female zookeeper Saturday.

Germany: Hamburg tries to turn a toxic past green

Josie Le BlondJuly 31, 2012 06:00

HAMBURG — Most residents of this northern German city associate the island of Wilhelmsburg with two landmarks: a monstrous Nazi bunker and a pile of highly toxic waste. But a group of urban planners wants to bring new purpose to the area through environmental projects intended to improve life for its inhabitants and attract new settlers.