Production of Taurus missiles, which Kiev has been pressuring Berlin to supply for use against Russia, is currently suspended, the head of the German branch of European arms manufacturer MBDA has said.
Around 600 of the missiles have so far been produced at a facility in the State of Bavaria, but the company cannot make more of them because it has no current contract with the German authorities, Thomas Gottschild said in an interview with the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper on Saturday. The production lines for the Taurus are still available, so MBDA could “ramp up” deliveries of the missiles “at any time,” the executive said. “To do this, however, we would need a new order for these weapons,” he added. The company cannot make reserves of the missiles because it is prohibited under German law, he explained. The halt in production is always a “challenge” for the defense industry, Gottschild stressed. “Our suppliers, who are often small and medium-sized enterprises... often cannot afford financially to maintain production lines. So if we were to receive new orders for the Taurus, our suppliers would first have to reposition themselves and, for example, secure the raw materials they need,” he explained. The Taurus missile has a range of over 500km (around 310 miles) and “is only detected very late by radar” as it moves at a low altitude, the executive said. “This capability profile is in high demand, especially in Ukraine.” However, Gottschild declined to answer a question on whether Kiev should be given the missiles, calling it a “political decision” that should be made by the German government. Chancellor Olaf Scholz doubled down on his refusal to provide Ukraine with Taurus missiles in mid-March, telling parliament that “this is a very long-range weapon” that could not be used without the deployment of German soldiers.” The statement was made just over a week after the publication by RT Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan of a leaked recording, in which high-ranking German officers discussed the possible use of Taurus missiles against the Crimean Bridge, and spoke about maintaining plausible deniability in the event of such an attack on Russian territory. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the leak “once again confirms the direct involvement of… the so-called collective West in the conflict around Ukraine,” while Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative at the UN, Dmitry Polyansky, suggested that it revealed Germany’s “new colors,” portraying it as “lying, mean, aggressive, revanchist and Russophobic.” The German authorities confirmed the authenticity of the recording, but claimed that Moscow took the conversation out of context in an attempt to cause division among Ukraine’s allies in the West.
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A major police operation is underway in Berlin in the investigation of two suspected RAF terrorists, who have been wanted for decades. Two men have been arrested, but their identities have not been released. 130 police officers were deployed for the action. According to German media, shots were heard, but this has not yet been officially confirmed. Heavily armed police units take part in the operation in the Friedrichshain district. Several properties are being searched. The two wanted men are Ernst-Volker Staub (69) and Burkhard Garweg (55), it is still unclear whether they have also been arrested. The two men are wanted for armed robbery, among other things. They were members of the extreme left-wing terrorist movement Red Army Faction (RAF), which committed attacks and murders in Germany in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. This week, Daniela Klette was also arrested in the German capital. She formed a trio together with Staub and Garweg. In addition to Klette, another person was also arrested on Tuesday, but his identity has not yet been released. Weapons and ammunition were found in the house where Klette was staying, German media report. This includes a Kalashnikov, a machine gun and a rocket launcher. DNA from a total of three RAF members was also found, police said. In addition to robberies, Klette is also suspected of attempted murder. The trio has been on international wanted lists for about thirty years. It was taken into account that the three Germans may have been staying in the Netherlands. Evidence of this was found during the investigation into an armed robbery in 2016 in Northern Germany.
Eighteen NATO member states plan to meet the alliance’s target of spending the equivalent of 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence in 2024, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. Speaking in Brussels before a meeting of defence officials from NATO’s 31 members on Wednesday, Stoltenberg noted that the number of states meeting the threshold has risen rapidly amid Russia’s seizure of Ukrainian territory and ultimately its full-scale invasion in 2022. Concern that the return of former United States President Donald Trump to the White House has also encouraged a rise in spending. “That is another record number and a sixfold increase from 2014 when only three allies met the target,” Stoltenberg said at a news conference. Stating that US partners in NATO have raised spending by $600bn over the past decade, the alliance’s political chief also warned that Trump was undermining their security by calling into question Washington’s commitment to its allies. Trump has long complained over the spending levels of NATO states. Over the weekend, the likely Republican candidate in November’s US election called into question the country’s willingness to support “delinquent” members of the alliance if they were attacked by Russia. “We should leave no room for miscalculation or misunderstanding in Moscow, about our readiness and our commitment, our resolve to protect allies,” Stoltenberg said. “NATO has the capabilities, we have the resolve to protect and defend all allies,” he continued. “We don’t see any imminent threat against any NATO ally.” Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz also criticised Trump’s comments. His Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said the Republican hopeful risked damaging transatlantic relations and could “ultimately saw off the branch on which America is sitting”. The government in Berlin has boosted defence spending since 2022 and is allocating the equivalent of 71.8 billion euros ($76.8bn) on defence this year through regular and special budget outlays. The total defence spending sum is classified. That will see Germany meet the 2 percent of GDP target for the first time since the end of the Cold War.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of grossly misrepresenting the situation in Ukraine, claiming he told an “absurd story” about the origin of the conflict during his sit-down with Tucker Carlson.
Speaking during a visit to Washington, DC on Friday, Scholz weighed in on Putin’s recent interview with the former Fox host, arguing it only “mocks what real actions have been done by Russia in Ukraine” and presented a “completely absurd story about the cause of this war.” “There is a very clear cause, that is the desire of the president of Russia to annex part of Ukraine. And all the stories that are told about it do not change the fact that that is exactly the purpose of his imperialist efforts,” the chancellor added. Scholz went on to say that the fighting could “end at any time,” but not “by Ukraine capitulating,” and that “conditions for a peaceful solution” must be created as soon as possible.German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of grossly misrepresenting the situation in Ukraine, claiming he told an “absurd story” about the origin of the conflict during his sit-down with Tucker Carlson. Speaking during a visit to Washington, DC on Friday, Scholz weighed in on Putin’s recent interview with the former Fox host, arguing it only “mocks what real actions have been done by Russia in Ukraine” and presented a “completely absurd story about the cause of this war.” “There is a very clear cause, that is the desire of the president of Russia to annex part of Ukraine. And all the stories that are told about it do not change the fact that that is exactly the purpose of his imperialist efforts,” the chancellor added. Scholz went on to say that the fighting could “end at any time,” but not “by Ukraine capitulating,” and that “conditions for a peaceful solution” must be created as soon as possible. NATO sees no threat from Russia toward any of its territories, the US-led bloc’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters on Tuesday during a press conference in Brussels. That’s as several alliance members, including Germany and the Baltic states, have raised concerns of a potential future Russian attack.
Answering questions from journalists following the signing of major new investments in artillery ammunition productions, Stoltenberg stated that, “We don’t see any direct or imminent threat against any NATO ally.” At the same time, he stressed that the bloc nevertheless “closely monitors what Russia does” and has increased its “vigilance and presence in the eastern part of the alliance,” in order to prevent any attacks on allied nations. Meanwhile, German news outlets have reported in recent weeks that Berlin was preparing for a scenario in which Russia launches an “open attack” on NATO as early as the summer of 2025 after securing a major victory in Ukraine. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also warned on Monday that his country should be ready to respond to a possible Russian attack even though there is no real threat as of now. “Deterrence is the only effective means of positioning oneself against an aggressor from the outset,” Pistorius told ZDF, calling on Germany and its NATO allies to commit to strengthening their military capabilities. Similar concerns have been voiced by other NATO members, such as Estonia, whose Prime Minister Kaja Kallas suggested last week that the bloc has three to five years to prepare for a possible direct confrontation with Russia. Moscow has dismissed any claims that it intends to attack any NATO members as “complete nonsense,” with President Vladimir Putin arguing that Russia has “no geopolitical, economic … or military interest” in doing so. At the same time, the Kremlin has for decades voiced concerns that it was the US and its NATO allies’ continuous expansion to the east that posed an existential threat to Russia. Moscow has cited this expansion, which it believes threatens its national security, as well as the refusal to rule out Ukrainian NATO membership in the future, as some of the key reasons for launching its offensive against Kiev in February 2022. NATO is set to carry out its largest round of war games in decades, with some 90,000 troops from all 31 member states – as well as Sweden – planning to participate. The drills will run for several months, and see training operations held across Europe.
Dubbed “Steadfast Defender 2024,” the exercise will kick off next week and continue into May, Supreme Allied Commander for Europe Christopher Cavoli announced at a Thursday press briefing. “Exercise Steadfast Defender 2024 will be the largest NATO exercise in decades, with participation from approximately 90,000 forces from all 31 Allies and our good partner Sweden,” Cavoli said, adding that the drills would simulate an “emerging conflict scenario against a near-peer adversary.” At least 1,100 combat vehicles are also set to take part in the war games – including 133 tanks and 533 infantry fighting vehicles – in addition to more than 50 naval vessels from aircraft carriers to destroyers. Around 80 helicopters, drones and fighter jets will join them. Cavoli went on to say that the training operations would show NATO’s ability to “reinforce the Euro-Atlantic area via trans-Atlantic movement of forces from North America,” suggesting the drills would rehearse a major US deployment to the continent. In a separate announcement, the bloc said the drill would demonstrate NATO’s ability to “conduct and sustain complex multi-domain operations over several months, across thousands of kilometers, from the High North to Central and Eastern Europe, and in any condition.” Earlier this week, UK Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said London would contribute 20,000 military personnel to Steadfast Defender, including troops with the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force. British fighter jets, warships and submarines will also take part. The last war games to rival the size of the upcoming exercise came in 1988, at the height of the Cold War, when 125,000 Western troops gathered for the US-led “Reforger” drill. The annual operation was meant to simulate a large deployment of forces to West Germany in the event of conflict with the Soviet Union, but was halted in 1993 following the collapse of the USSR. Last week German media claimed that Berlin was bracing for hostilities with Russia, which it projected could arise as early as summer 2025. Moscow has for decades voiced concerns about NATO’s expansion towards its borders, viewing it as an existential threat. President Vladimir Putin earlier cited Ukraine’s desire to join the bloc as one of the key reasons for the current conflict. I spent a week with farmers protesting near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. Too bad Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government didn’t get down off its high horse and do the same. It was a missed opportunity to benefit from a much-needed mugging by reality.
Instead, the Interior Ministry contented itself by preemptively framing the protesters as susceptible to far-right infiltration. Scholz said that “rage is being stoked deliberately” by “extremists”. When asked about this concept, the unanimous response among the farmers was laughter, eye rolling, or one-line jokes. If you want to put down a dog, just say it has rabies – or has been hanging out with the far-right. Despite the protest taking place right across the street from the German parliament, farmers said the only officials whose presence was noticed, as they inquired about the protesters’ concerns, were from the right-wing Alternative for Deutschland. Oh no, looks they’re co-opting already! Or maybe they’re just doing their jobs in trying to actually grasp the “ground truth” of the situation rather than framing it up with a convenient narrative in an effort to dismiss it. When a government official finally graced the protest with his presence on January 15, at the apex of the week-long protest, it was Finance Minister Christian Lindner, who took to the stage and loudly proclaimed that the government basically had no money. “I can't promise you more state aid from the federal budget. But we can fight together for you to enjoy more freedom and respect for your work,” he said. I’m not even a farmer – although I was raised on a farm in the Netherlands – and still I find this infuriating. Mostly just as a woman, though. Because Lindner sounds like a guy on a date who says that he’s broke, but instead of just splitting the check, he wants you to pay for the whole thing. The farmers aren’t asking Berlin to pay their bills. What they want is for Team Scholz to refrain from taking even more of their hard-earned money in the form of taxes on diesel fuel for their farm vehicles, particularly at a time when government efforts to stick it to Russia and to the climate-change bogeyman, by making fossil fuel energy less available and affordable, is making it increasingly harder for them to do the job of feeding the country. As if farmers aren’t already paying this government enough. One farmhand told me that his boss has a budget of €3,300 a month for his job, and that by the time all the taxes are paid to the German government, the final salary paid to the worker tops out at €1,400. Where’s all that cash going? Here’s a clue. Scholz said last fall that Germany had to “be able to help Ukraine on the basis of solidarity. We support Ukraine in its defense struggle, with financial resources and weapons.” Yet German farmers are not only told to eat cake, Marie Antoinette style, but also to pay up for the government’s screw-ups. Team Scholz blasted a hole in its own budget when it transferred cash from a Covid fund into a “climate and transformation fund,” but then couldn’t pay it all back, leaving a €17 billion ($18.5 billion) deficit and a scramble to somehow recoup the funds through austerity measures. So Scholz wants the farmers to pay his bills, but also to pay for his mistakes. And if they refuse, they must have been infiltrated by far-right extremists. Unlike this government, farmers pride themselves on productivity and self-sufficiency, which is why they’re juicy targets for the gold diggers in the Bundestag. When floods hit Germany, it was farmers, they say, who were on the front lines rescuing people even before the army was on-site. Throughout the entire protest week of sub-zero temperatures, farmers weathered the elements with several large wood-burning heaters fueled by a massive bin of chopped firewood. Many slept in their trucks or tractors all week. It’s hardly surprising that firefighters were captured on social media expressing their support and admiration for this group, as a large number of farmers also serve as volunteer firefighters in their communities. While he’s hiding across the street in his office, being serenaded by big-rig honking, Scholz’s popularity is hovering around 20%, while 69% of Germans support the farmers’ protests, according to an INSA poll from earlier this month. Has it dawned on the bundeskanzler that if such an overwhelmingly large swath of the population, from the right to the left, all agrees on something, then maybe he just has a “you” problem? The solidarity and unity witnessed in front of the Brandenburg Gate (a symbol of division once located in no man’s land between East and West Berlin) was astounding – from a woman in a hijab handing out soup from a basket to Berliners of migrant origin walking among the participants and expressing their support. Not only did trucks join the tractors, but word got out that farmers and truckers from the Netherlands were on the Autobahn’s A2 and heading towards Berlin. There was also buzz that Polish and Russian truckers were joining forces en route from the Polish border, just hours away. It’s not just farmers and truckers who are fed up. The folks who actually drive the Deutsche Bahn trains went on strike in the same week as the farmers. While the government is haggling with them over their union’s request of a €3,000 ($3,265) one-time employee bonus to cover government-driven inflation, it managed to nonetheless find several million more euros for each of nine top executives of the wholly government-owned company. German farmers have begun a week of nationwide demonstrations, blocking roads with tractors in protest against government plans to phase out agricultural subsidies.
As Joachim Rukwied, president of the German Farmers’ Association (DBV), put it last month, ‘We will be present everywhere in a way the country has never seen before’. And the farmers are not alone. Lorry drivers, hauliers and tradespeople have also joined in the protests. The current wave of unrest was prompted back in December. The German government announced plans to abolish tax breaks on agricultural diesel and introduce new taxes on farm vehicles – a move which would cost farmers on average €4,000 per year. The swift and organised response of the farmers has already frightened the government. On 4 January, it tried to backtrack by announcing that subsidies for new farm vehicles would remain, and that the tax breaks on diesel would be phased out gradually over the course of the next few years, rather than suddenly this year. But these moves have not assuaged farmers’ anger. They insist that the ‘future viability of our industry’ is at stake. And so, as Rukwied put it last week, farmers ‘remain committed’ to the ‘week of action’. It was naïve of the government to believe that its half-hearted compromise would ever appease the farmers. This conflict goes much deeper than a fight over taxes and subsidies. It is about farmers’ long-standing resentment of the green agenda that has been pursued by successive governments. This agenda now threatens the very future of German agriculture. Indeed, the farmers first engaged in mass protest back in 2019, after Angela Merkel’s government demanded a 20 per cent reduction in the use of fertilisers and pesticides as part of its ‘agriculture reform package’. Merkel’s successors have only increased the pressure on farmers. Plans to further reduce fertiliser and pesticide use were announced last summer, with the government keen to meet the EU’s strict directives on nitrates. At the same time, the government announced it planned to tighten animal-husbandry regulations, entangling farmers in even more red tape and paperwork. It is no exaggeration to say that the future of farming is at stake. In the space of just two decades, countless farms have already had to close. The number of farms in Germany during this period has almost halved – from nearly 450,000 in 2001 to 256,000 in 2022. Environmental restrictions and soaring energy costs haven’t just affected smaller farms, either. Bigger farms have also felt the squeeze. To make matters worse, the prices of fertilisers and pesticides have risen sharply, as the German chemical industry has cut back production due to high energy prices. Thanks to the government’s embrace of the green agenda, it is incapable of addressing farmers’ concerns. Over and over again, it pursues Net Zero objectives that are directly at odds with the interests of farmers. And just to rub salt into farmers’ wounds, Germany’s agriculture minister, Cem Özdemir, is a militant vegetarian. ‘If we all eat less meat together, we can all do our bit for the planet’, he told a TV talkshow last year. No wonder farmers have lost all trust in the government. Instead of addressing problems afflicting the agricultural sector, the government, backed by the green-leaning media, has tried to discredit the protesting farmers. It is regularly claimed that the strikes are being exploited by populists and the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD). But is it? German farmers drove hundreds of tractors into the capital Berlin on Monday to protest government plans to abolish tax relief for agricultural diesel. Traffic ground to a halt for several hours in the government district and around the Brandenburg Gate as convoys of tractors moved into the city on major roads. Joachim Rukwied, president of the German Farmers' Association, described the government's decision as a "declaration of war," and said they would not accept it. He also warned that farmers would stage nationwide protests next month if the plan was not rolled back. "Then from January 8th we will be present everywhere in a way that the country has never experienced before,” he said in a statement. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's left-liberal coalition government announced austerity measures and spending cuts last week to fix a €17 billion (about $18.5 billion) gap in the 2024 budget. Under the scheme, German farmers will no longer receive tax breaks on the diesel they use and will no longer be exempt from car tax on farming vehicles. German agricultural associations have been warning that the subsidy cuts would make food even more expensive next year, as transport and energy costs are also expected to rise in 2024.
The Rodenberg Luke OD Overdrive-Pedal is the original version of the three-way Luke SL-OD, which is more affordable than the original version which is loaded, with a sound that is completely accurate.
There has been a close collaboration between Steve Lukather and the German pedal manufacturer Rodenberg for several years. Enough reasons to take a closer look at the Luke OD! In the review pedal today is basically the little brother of the Rodenberg SL-OD we have already tested, which is equipped with three independent channels and costs more than twice as much. In terms of sound, the new Luke OD should be identical to the low and high gain overdrive of the large pedal. You can read its test here. So far, so exciting! But we'll get to the sound later in the practical part. First of all, we have to look at the good piece up close. As usual, the Luke OD is delivered in a box, in which it completes its journey to the customer safely wrapped in foam, as well as an operating manual written in German and English - and it's worth mentioning: there are also rubber feet in the box to stick on the bottom, which is actually shouldn't be worth mentioning, but manufacturers of high-priced boutique pedals in particular often refuse to deliver them with their products. The Luke OD makes an extremely robust and high-quality impression and is completely handcrafted in Fulda. At this point, if you haven't already done so, you should quickly take a look at the selling price again, because it is quite moderate for a hand-made pedal - assuming, of course, that the sound is right. But more on that later. With its 240 grams and dimensions of 59 x 110 x 33 mm, it has standard dimensions, and if you turn the controls, it immediately becomes clear that high-quality components have been installed here that can be moved smoothly but with enough resistance. There is a level control that determines the output volume, a gain control for adjusting the distortion and a tone pot that controls the treble level. There is also a switch for selecting the low or high gain mode and a toggle switch labeled bass that activates a bass boost. Of course, a footswitch that wakes the pedal from its true bypass sleep is also a must. As soon as the pedal is active, the LUKE lettering lights up red, a very nice detail! The connections in the form of input and output on the right and left sides of the black painted housing as well as the power supply socket on the front are still missing. This allows the connection of a standardized 9-volt DC dispenser, but the Luke OD can also be operated with 18 volts. A look at the cleanly crafted interior shows that battery operation is not intended. As expected, there is absolutely nothing to complain about in terms of workmanship, the pedal makes a high-quality, robust impression, which brings us to the practical part. Limits on electricity and gas prices will not be extended until March 2024 as previously planned, but will expire at the end of this year, Deutschlandfunk radio station has cited Finance Minister Christian Lindner as saying in an interview to be aired on Sunday.
“As of December 31 of this year the Economic and Stabilization Fund will be closed,” Lindner said. “There will be no more payouts from this. The electricity and gas price brakes will also be terminated.” Lindner did not clarify whether energy support would be provided via the regular budget in 2024. The financial support scheme was introduced to protect households and businesses from soaring prices of gas and electricity after Germany, along with many other EU member states, opted to slash energy imports from Russia after the outbreak of the military conflict in Ukraine. Earlier this month, the European Commission called on Berlin to phase out its price caps as soon as possible. The decision comes days after the German Constitutional Court blocked the federal government's move to transfer €60 billion ($66 billion) from funds initially earmarked to tackle the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, to other projects. The fund – known by its German abbreviation WSF – is one of the country’s 29 such non-budget institutions, worth around €870 billion. The ruling has jeopardised funding for plans to modernise the German economy and fight climate change. The decision by the country’s top court could also set a precedent for fiscal responses to future crises. Investigative journalists have been carrying out their own research to solve the Nord Stream whodunnit, leading to sometimes sensational, if unconfirmed, reports.
Dutch military intelligence warned the CIA of a Ukrainian plan to blow up the pipelines three months before the attack, Dutch broadcaster NOS and Germany’s Die Zeit and ARD reported in June. The Washington Post made a similar claim. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly denied his country was behind the sabotage. “I would never do that,” he told Germany’s Bild newspaper, adding he would “like to see proof”. In March, The New York Times wrote that US officials had seen intelligence indicating a “pro-Ukrainian group” was responsible, without Zelenskyy’s knowledge. German media have focused on the Andromeda, with reporters from Der Spiegel magazine and broadcaster ZDF recreating the journey they believe was made by the six-person crew. According to their reporting, a forged passport used to hire the sailboat leads back to a Ukrainian soldier, while the charter fee was paid by a company registered in Poland with ties to a woman in Kyiv. In June, The Wall Street Journal reported Germany was trying to match DNA samples found on the vessel “to at least one Ukrainian soldier”. The Journal also said evidence found in the investigation included data from Andromeda’s radio and navigation equipment, satellite and mobile phones, and Gmail accounts allegedly used by the perpetrators. Danish media have reported a Russian naval vessel specialised in submarine operations, the SS-750, was photographed near the site of the blasts days before the attack. US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh reported in February the US was behind the blasts and that Norway assisted. It was dismissed as “fiction” by the White House. Was it a false flag operation? Experts have not ruled out a “false flag” operation by Russia, with clues deliberately placed to pin the blame on Ukraine. Andreas Umland, an analyst at the Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies, said he sees Russia as “the most likely” culprit. Any suspected involvement by Kyiv in an attack on Europe’s energy infrastructure could threaten the support of allies, which would benefit Russia. At the same time, the destroyed pipelines could help Gazprom avoid compensation claims for undelivered gas, even though the company was reluctant to keep the taps open before the blasts. Moscow may have sought “to kill two birds with one stone”, Umland said. The Kremlin has strongly denied responsibility. Moscow blames the US Russia has alleged the US was behind the attack, noting the sabotage “occurred after the repeated threats to the Nord Stream by the leadership of the United States”. In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed the argument that Kyiv was behind the explosions, instead laying blame on the US. “Who is interested? Theoretically, the United States is interested in stopping the supply of Russian energy to the European market and supplying volumes of its own,” he told an interviewer. “Such an explosion, so powerful and at such depth, could only be conducted by experts backed by the entire potential of a state that has relevant technologies,” said Putin. Diplomatically sensitive investigations ongoing The blasts occurred in the economic zones of Sweden and Denmark, so both countries launched investigations into the incident. So far, they say the explosions were deliberate, but they have yet to single out who was behind the blasts. Germany also launched an investigation with federal prosecutors searching a yacht in January that might have been used to transport the explosives. They seized objects from the vessel and found traces of explosives. Germany’s flagship airline Lufthansa has warned that it would need to consume half of the country’s entire electricity output if it were to shift to green fuels such as e-kerosene, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr reportedly stated that synthetic fuels manufactured using renewable energy represented the best approach to decarbonize aviation. However, it is unlikely that there is sufficient green electricity in Germany to generate them, the executive warned. “We would need around half of Germany’s electricity to create enough of the fuels,” Spohr was quoted as saying at an aviation conference in Hamburg. “I don’t think Mr. Habeck is going to give me that,” he added, referring to Economy and Energy Minister Robert Habeck. According to the report, synthetic fuels such as green kerosene, which is derived from water, are seen by aviation industry executives as the only technically viable way to decarbonize air travel. The industry has been working to set up a market for a carbon-neutral version of the kerosene that powers most modern aircraft. However, the process requires huge amounts of electricity generated from renewable resources in order to ensure carbon neutrality. The attempts to decarbonize air travel come at a time when Germany has to rely on imported electricity because it can no longer meet its demand with domestically generated power. The EU’s largest economy has had to ramp up electricity imports this year after the government decided to shut down the country’s last remaining nuclear power plants in favor of renewable energy sources. Germany has also been struggling due to the reduction in Russian energy deliveries, which were almost entirely halted after the EU imposed sanctions on Moscow last year in response to the Ukraine conflict. Prior to 2022, Germany relied on Russia for roughly 40% of its natural gas. German industry executives have sounded the alarm over looming electricity shortages that could endanger the competitiveness of Germany as an industrial hub. House Speaker Anthony Rota praised Yaroslav Hunka, 98, as a ‘Ukrainian hero’ at Canada’s Parliament, with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Justin Trudeau attending and applauding.
The speaker of Canada’s House of Commons has apologised for praising an individual who served in a Nazi unit during World War II in a session attended by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visiting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Speaker Anthony Rota recognised Yaroslav Hunka, 98, as a “Ukrainian hero, a Canadian hero”, saying “we thank him for all his service” before the Canadian Parliament on Friday. Hunka served in World War II as a member of the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, according to the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center, a Jewish human rights group, that demanded an apology. The centre said Hunka’s ties to the Nazi war machine “are well-documented”. Both Zelenskyy and Trudeau joined in acknowledging Hunka during the parliament session with applause. Rota took responsibility for what he characterised as an oversight, calling the initiative “entirely my own”. “I have subsequently become aware of more information which causes me to regret my decision,” he said in a statement issued on Sunday, offering his “deepest apologies to Jewish communities in Canada and around the world”. The recognition came following the visit to parliament by Zelenskyy, who thanked Canada for its assistance in Ukraine’s war against Russia. Rota said no one, including fellow parliamentarians or the Ukrainian delegation, was aware of his plans or remarks beforehand. Germany’s economic output will shrink this year, amid weak demand from abroad, soaring interest rates, and a protracted energy crisis, the latest forecast from the German Economic Institute (IW) revealed.
The economy is in a state of a “shock,” according to the IW, with businesses particularly affected by geopolitical uncertainties arising from the conflict in Ukraine. German companies and industries will “feel the global problems all the harder” this year due to scarcity and surging prices of raw materials and energy, the economists warned. Sluggish global trade and weak demand will result in lower-than-expected gross domestic product for the EU’s largest economy. It’s predicted to slump by almost 0.5% compared to last year, while unemployment will reach 5.5%, the report said. Inflation has remained high since the start of the year and is likely to stay at around 6.5%, weighing on consumer spending. “ The government urgently needs to take action to end this economic downturn,” the head of the macroeconomic and the Business Cycle Research Unit at the IW, Professor Michael Gromling, said. “Lower tax burdens and attractive and un-bureaucratic support for innovation and investment would help companies cope better with the current shocks,” he added. Economic sentiment in Germany has suffered from the effects of fiscal tightening, such as increased production costs and high interest rates. Investments have become less attractive for companies, with the construction sector among the worst-hit, data showed. Investments in home building are expected to fall by 3% this year. |
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