Germany

BERLIN, June 18 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday presented a basic outline and goals of Germany's presidency of the EU Council starting in July, setting tackling COVID-19 as the "leitmotif" for its term.

"Europe needs us as much as we need Europe," said Merkel in a speech to the Bundestag, the lower house of the German parliament. "Europe is something that we can and must create. It is a dynamic order of peace and freedom."

She said that Germany would assume this responsibility at a time when Europe was facing "its greatest challenge" in history.

BERLIN (AP) — The Group of Seven leading economies is calling on China to reconsider plans to impose a national security law in Hong Kong, according to a joint statement issued Wednesday.

The national security legislation is aimed at curbing secessionist activities that Beijing says fueled monthslong anti-government protests in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

BERLIN, June 16. /TASS/: The German government should consider possible steps in case of expansion of US sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, head of the Bundestag [German parliament] Committee on Economic Affairs and Energy Klaus Ernst said at a press conference on Tuesday.

"We should think of whether tit-for-tat measures are needed, for example, punitive sanctions on US LNG," Ernst said. "We should then think whether sanctions should be introduced against senators initiating [the bill on sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 project — TASS]," he noted.

BERLIN, June 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) – The German government intends to invest 300 million euros (338 million U.S. dollars) in local biotechnology company CureVac, the country’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy announced here on Monday.

The investment aims to support further, development of the German company and its projects in the pipeline, according to a joint statement by CureVac and the ministry. CureVac is currently developing a coronavirus vaccine.

BERLIN (AP) — European countries reopened borders Monday after a three-month coronavirus shutdown, although international visitors are still being kept away and there was uncertainty over whether many Europeans will quickly embrace travel outside their home countries.

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany has signalled it will push for a tougher EU line towards China, adding language to a draft document that would see a stronger demand for “reciprocity” - seen as code for access for European firms — and a new emphasis on “values”.

Germany takes over the rotating presidency of the EU in the second half of this year. It has set out its policy plans for the presidency in a draft reviewed by Reuters on Monday, which supersedes an earlier draft compiled in March.

BERLIN, June 5. /TASS/: The German government rejects extraterritorial sanctions by the United States as Berlin’s position on Nord Stream 2 has not changed, a representative of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy told a briefing on Friday.

The official was commenting on the bill a group of US senators submitted to the Senate. The document implies expansion of sanctions against the gas pipeline.

"We are following the development of the situation around Nord Stream 2 in the USA, but we do not comment on this," she said.

BERLIN, June 12. / TASS /: The German government fears that new US sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 project, if introduced, may for the first time affect German public administration, related to the project in one way or another, as well as German companies, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper reported on Friday, with reference to a Ministry of Economy document intended for internal use.

BERLIN (AP) — People have taken to the streets of Berlin, London, Paris and other cities around the world to demonstrate in support of Black Lives Matter protesters in the United States and to vent anger over President Donald Trump’s response to the police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota.

But at the top, the leaders of traditional allies of the United States have taken pains to avoid criticizing Trump directly, walking a fine line to reconcile international diplomacy with domestic outrage.

BERLIN, June 12 (NNN-AGENCIES) — German airline Lufthansa has said it will cut 22,000 jobs as it struggles to deal with the slump in air travel caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The carrier predicted a slow recovery in demand and expected to have about 100 fewer aircraft after the crisis.

Lufthansa said half the job cuts would be in Germany. It hopes to agree the measures with unions by June 22.

It added that it hoped to minimise redundancies through short-time working and crisis agreements.