Germany

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is flying to Washington this week on a mission to reassure Americans that his country stands alongside the United States and other NATO partners in opposing any Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Scholz has said that Moscow would pay a “high price” in the event of an attack, but his government’s refusal to supply lethal weapons to Ukraine, bolster its troop presence in eastern Europe or spell out which sanctions it would support against Russia has drawn criticism abroad and at home.

BERLIN, February 4. /TASS/: The German government decisively condemns Russia’s measures against Deutsche Welle and hopes that they will be cancelled, Cabinet Deputy Spokesman Wolfgang Buchner said Friday.

"The German Government decisively condemns the measures announced against Deutsche Welle. They are completely groundless and they violate the right to freedom of the press," he stated.

He claimed that German authorities are in no way involved in the issuing of licenses and the situation around RT DE.

BERLIN, Feb 4 (Reuters) - The first U.S. troops reinforcing NATO allies in Eastern Europe and Germany amid a Russian military build-up on Ukraine's border have arrived in Germany, the U.S. military's European Command said on Friday.

"Soldiers from the 18th Airborne Corps arrived in Wiesbaden today," a spokesperson for the command said in a statement, adding that they would establish a headquarters in Germany to support 1,700 paratroopers meant to deploy to Poland.

BERLIN, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Britain should respect post-Brexit trade rules or else face consequences, a German official said on Thursday as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was "crazy" to have checks on goods heading from Britain only to Northern Ireland.

Tensions over the Northern Ireland protocol, signed as part of Britain's exit from the European Union, flared again after Belfast ordered an immediate halt on Wednesday on checks on agri-foods, earning a rebuke from Brussels.

BERLIN, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- To offset the effect of rising energy prices, the German government decided on Wednesday to provide a one-time heating allowance to around 2.1 million people in the country.

Support would be provided in particular to housing benefit recipients and students receiving financial support, it said.

Housing benefit recipients who live alone would receive 135 euros (153 U.S. dollars), two-person households would get 175 euros, while students are to receive 115 euros, according to the government.

BERLIN, January 30. /TASS/: Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline’s operator, Nord Stream 2 AG, is unlikely to be certified before late June, despite the fact that it has a subsidiary in Germany, President of the Federal Network Agency Jochen Homann said in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper, which came out on Sunday.

BERLIN, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Germany's Greens on Saturday elected their youngest ever leader, building on their success in a national election last year that revealed their popularity among young voters.

Ricarda Lang, a 28-year-old lawmaker, will co-lead the party with her parliamentary colleague and foreign affairs expert, Omid Nouripour. They replace Annalena Baerbock and Robert Habeck who have led the party since 2018 but have both taken ministerial posts in Germany's new government.

Jan 27 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will meet U.S. President Joe Biden on Feb. 7 at the White House to discuss tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Washington said on Thursday.

The leaders would "discuss their shared commitment to both ongoing diplomacy and joint efforts to deter further Russian aggression against Ukraine," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.

BERLIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 100 of the 390 planned trade fairs in Germany have already been postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) said on Wednesday.

The economic damage to the German trade fair industry already amounted to around 5 billion euros (5.6 billion U.S. dollars) this year, according to AUMA.

"COVID-19 regulations of the federal states, which are valid for four weeks or less, are no basis for business," said Joern Holtmeier, managing director of AUMA.

BERLIN, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- At least 100 of the 390 planned trade fairs in Germany have already been postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (AUMA) said on Wednesday.

The economic damage to the German trade fair industry already amounted to around 5 billion euros (5.6 billion U.S. dollars) this year, according to AUMA.

"COVID-19 regulations of the federal states, which are valid for four weeks or less, are no basis for business," said Joern Holtmeier, managing director of AUMA.