Chinese Police More Active Than German Police – In Germany

Well, somebody’s got to do the police work around here.

China still conducting police activities in Germany – German ministries. German security authorities believe that China is still conducting police activities on German soil even though Beijing assured Berlin in February that it had ceased to do so, the German foreign and interior ministries said on Monday.

Meanwhile…

Germany: Viral video prompts debate on police brutality – Footage of a German police officer using a pain grip on a climate activist has some experts saying police have broken the law.

Germany May Be Arming Ukraine

But it clearly has no intention of arming itself.

This is still considered news?

Germany is finally focusing on defending NATO, but its military ‘lacks almost everything’ it needs to do it, a former German general says.

In the early years after the Cold War, the military of the reunited Germany — comprising the West German Bundeswehr and parts of East Germany’s National Volksarmee — was a large, well-trained, and well-equipped force.

In 1990, that force had almost 500,000 personnel. Today, the German military is just 183,000-strong, and it can’t meet its recruiting goals. In 2018, half of its jet fighters and none of its six submarines were rated ready for combat. In 2022, German commanders complained that their Puma infantry fighting vehicles were plagued by defects.

German Of The Day: Sprengung

That means blasting.

I got your infrastructure for you right here, pal.

If all goes well, the Rahmedetalbrücke (bridge) will collapse exactly vertically on Sunday. “We don’t have a meter of space,” says blaster Michael Schneider, meaning that the bridge must not tip to the side during the blasting. This is because there are houses almost directly underneath it, which must not come to any harm.

Zelenskiy’s Planned Visit To Berlin On May 13 Never Happened

The plan. Much less the announcement. Nothing was planned and we know of no visit. The key word here being no, not know. In fact, we know nothing. Nothing!

German police investigating leak of Zelenskyy’s Berlin itinerary – The Berlin police press office reported the leak on May 3, as news emerged that unnamed sources withing the police force allegedly confirmed the visit. Police officials stated that they did not provide official information that would jeopardize the security of Zelenskyy’s visit, and only confirmed that such a visit would someday take place.

“I find it unbearable that – if you believe the article in the newspaper – a single employee is damaging the reputation of the Berlin police in such a shameful way, both nationally and internationally.”

German Of The Day: Selbstversorgung

That means self-sufficiency.

The Big Dig: Germany reopens its mines in quest for mineral self-sufficiency – Berlin wants to reduce its dependence on China by extracting more critical raw materials, such as fluorspar, at home.

“If we really want a revolution in transport and the resources needed for that, there’s no way around this project.”

First We Take Ostelsheim

Then we take Berlin.

A Syrian who arrived in Germany as a refugee in 2015 has been elected as the mayor of a village in the south-west of the country.

Ryyan Alshebl, 29, who is a member of the German Greens but stood as a non-party candidate, won an absolute majority in Sunday’s mayoral election in Ostelsheim, a small municipality of about 2,500 inhabitants in the state of Baden-Württemberg.

You Can Always Count On Us

To not be counted on.

Don’t thank us. It’s just what we do. Or don’t do, in this case.

German minister expects Bundeswehr shortages beyond 2030.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has said the country’s military, the Bundeswehr, will not be able to bridge gaps in funding and supplies by 2030.

“We all know that the existing gaps cannot be completely closed by 2030… It will take years. Everyone is aware of that…”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a special fund to raise €100 billion for the Bundeswehr last year, although this has not yet been put to use. The government last week also earmarked €12 billion over the next nine years to supply Ukraine with newly produced weapons and ammunition rather than from German stockpiles.

Now It’s Credit Crunch Time

Energy price falls spark drop in German and Spanish inflation – Headline pressures ease but investors bet ECB will have to raise interest rates in May.

Some members of the governing council have called for the bank to adopt a more cautious approach after raising interest rates by half a percentage point this month.

The turmoil in the banking sector has also opened up the prospect of a potential credit crunch that could slam the brakes on both inflation and growth in the coming months.

Germans Hate America

Why should they be the only ones who don’t?

But…

German companies love America. According to the German-American Chamber of Commerce, around 5,600 of them have invested in the US market. As of September 2022, that’s an investment volume of almost $650 billion (€605 billion). And it’s not only big firms like Siemens, Volkswagen, or Linde that are currently looking to strengthen their commitment to the United States — in some instances, even building entire new production facilities.