Looks like it’s Fridays for No-Future for you.
German students in US urge Berlin to take stand against new visa rules – “We’re counting on your support,” students wrote in an open letter to Angela Merkel’s government. Under new pandemic rules, international students face expulsion from the US if their schools offer online-only classes.
The new visa regulations as part of “an increasingly xenophobic immigration policy.”
He didn’t say who these counter-reactions were going to be most painful too, however.
Nord Stream 2, folks. It’s getting ugly. The ex-chancellor’s reaction is quite understandable, however. Considering who he works for.
German government officials, MPs and experts have criticised U.S. plans to tighten sanctions on the contentious natural gas pipeline project Nord Stream 2 (NS2) currently under construction in the Baltic Sea as an encroachment on EU sovereignty in a parliamentary hearing. Former German chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who has close ties to the Russian government and chairs Nord Stream 2’s board of directors, said there is no doubt that the U.S. attempt to “dictate the sovereign community of states such as the EU what to do” must be rejected. He said that diplomatic possibilities must be exploited, “but this will not work without counter sanctions”, without giving details. Schröder said natural gas would be needed as a bridging technology in Germany’s energy system for a very long time.
But the former chancellor’s comments were met with criticism. His presence as a “badly informed Russian gas lobbyist is a disgrace for the highest government office”, said Alexander Reitzenstein, senior policy advisor at think tank E3G.
Most likely, if it’s directed against US-Amerika everybody jumps on board.
Germany Weighs Measures Against U.S. Over Nord Stream Threat – The 1,200-kilometer (745 mile) pipeline under the Baltic Sea, designed to pump Russian gas directly to Germany, has triggered deep division between EU member states. But the prospect of a direct U.S. intervention in the 27-member bloc’s energy interests should prompt a collective response, said the officials, who asked not to be identified.
“The government is called upon to develop and put forward proposals for a measured, clear reaction on behalf of Germany and the European Union.”
That means surprisingly.
And you can just hear the disappointment ringing in this article’s title: Arbeitslosigkeit in den USA im Mai überraschend gesunken. That means unemployment in the USA in May sunk surprisingly.
You’ll get over it, Germany. That we’ll get over it, I mean. Now let’s see what you can do about your rising unemployment figures.
Damit haben die Experten nicht gerechnet: Die Arbeitslosenquote in den USA ist trotz der anhaltenden Folgen der Viruskrise überraschend gesunken.
And again and again and again.
In this episode we die of coronavirus. Stay tuned for the next one.
How Trump Is Fueling a Corona Disaster – Donald Trump’s disastrous crisis management has made the United States the new epicenter of the global coronavirus pandemic. The country is facing an unprecedented economic crash. Are we witnessing the implosion of a superpower?
“German schadenfreude knows no bounds, particularly when it comes to the United States. The country loves to feel superior to a superpower like America. The reasons are psychological. The criticism of America has always been a bit infantile. One is familiar with the theory from psychoanalysis, when people talk about transference, or when suppressed feelings or emotions are overcome by projecting them onto others. It may work for a while, improving one’s feeling of self-worth by devaluing an imagined adversary. But it always falls short. Which is why the ritual must be constantly carried out anew.”
– Jan Fleischhauer (a German journalist who used to work for Der Spiegel itself)
PS: The quality of Spiegel journalism should never be placed in doubt.
After the drone attack that killed top terrorist Qasem Soleimani, I mean. Well, we certainly wouldn’t want that.
We can all sleep safer at night knowing that seasoned professional diplomats like Heiko Maas are always on the world stage ball ever prepared to lecture the United States about problems their own countries haven’t the slightest clue about dealing with. Or the will to do so if they did. Good intentions make the world go around.
Comments made by the foreign minister demonstrate that in case of Iranian aggression, the federal government will not take sides with America. Germany has no answer to the aggresive Iranian expanansion and wallows in the role of de-escalator.
“In the coming days, we will do all we can to counteract a further escalation of the situation – in the United Nations, the EU and in dialogue with our partners in the region, including in talks with Iran.”
Durch die Aktion“ sei es „nicht einfacher geworden, Spannungen abzubauen. Das habe ich auch @SecPompeo deutlich gesagt“. Es wird den amerikanischen Außenminister schwer beeindruckt haben.
Germans in favor of ‘reducing reliance’ on US.
A new YouGov poll has found that a majority of Germans are in favor of reducing reliance on the US and increasing ties with Russia. Chancellor Angela Merkel has said Germany cannot defend itself alone.
And good luck with those increased Russian ties!
Right? Not in Germany there isn’t.
To understand any German position on any international theme or issue you must understand that US-Amerika is somehow, in some way, in some form, a, if not the, negative factor in it. Once you understand and accept this, everything German politicians and diplomats say starts making sense. Take China and 5G for instance. Please.
The US ambassador to Berlin has sharply criticised German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier for suggesting a parallel between Chinese and US spying.
The row flared up over Germany’s decision not to ban Chinese tech giant Huawei from participation in the German 5G mobile phone network…
Meanwhile, a new opinion poll suggests a wide gap between the views of Americans and Germans on US-German relations.
Three-quarters of Americans surveyed were positive. But nearly two-thirds of Germans felt relations were bad, the Pew Research Center/Körber-Stiftung poll found.
“There is no moral equivalency between China and the United States and anyone suggesting it ignores history.”
That’s what it means when it comes to troops and international security zones, at any rate.
It’s hilarious to watch this ritual. Whenever no one else is around to do the dirty work (in this case US-Amerika in Syria), Germans like to pretend that an international force can do the dirty work instead. The punchline comes later, however (stay tuned): The same Germans will then turn down any attempt made in the Bundestag to have German troops participate in such an international security zone. It’s a win-win situation.
Germany’s defence minister has suggested creating a security zone in northern Syria to protect displaced civilians and ensure the fight continues against Islamic State militia, the first time Berlin has proposed a military mission in the Middle East.
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Angela Merkel’s preferred successor as chancellor, said she would discuss the initiative with NATO partners this week and did not rule out sending German soldiers to Syria, saying that would be a matter for parliament.
“We cannot just stand by and watch and not doing anything.” That’s right. Sit down and do so.
German-U.S. Ties Are Breaking Down – Never since the founding of postwar Germany have relations between Berlin and the United States been as fragile as they are today. There is virtual radio silence between Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Donald Trump and U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell is doing more to agitate the situation than to mediate.
It’s quite easy to explain, really: “I’m making them pay their bills” and the Germans don’t want to pay these bills. They’ve never paid them in the past, they’re thinking, so why should we pay them now? If there’s anything else I can do to straighten any of this up for you here, just ask.
“There is no understanding, but there are also no misunderstandings.”
