Taiwanese rocket fails to achieve Japan’s first foreign launch

Taiwanese private rocket company TiSpace terminated the flight of one of its rockets shortly after lift-off in northern Japan on Saturday, failing to become the first foreign company to perform a successful launch on Japanese soil.
TiSpace, through its Japanese unit jtSPACE, tried to…[Read more]

Bundestag commemorates the Srebrenica massacre

Current information about Germany’s foreign policy and foreign relations.

Berlin (dpa) – 30 years after the genocide in Srebrenica, the Bundestag has commemorated the victims. “Srebrenica was the worst war crime committed on European soil since the Second World War,” said Bundestag President Julia K…[Read more]

German backpacker found alive after 12 days missing in Australian outback

Australian authorities said they found a 26-year-old German backpacker “safe and well” after she had been missing in a remote part of the country’s northwest for almost two weeks.
Carolina Wilga, who vanished on June 29 from near the outback town of Beacon, about 254 km…[Read more]

Postponed vote on top judge pitches German coalition into crisis

A planned vote on appointing three new judges to Germany’s Constitutional Court was shelved on Friday, as conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s coalition struggled to muster a parliamentary majority for the second time in three months.
Other parties, including his Social Democrat…[Read more]

Germany says Russia using media platform Red to sow discontent

Russia is using the online media outlet Red to sow discontent in German society as part of a disinformation campaign waged alongside its war in Ukraine, the foreign ministry in Berlin said on Wednesday.
“Red presents itself as a revolutionary platform for independent journalists.…[Read more]

Germany summons Iranian ambassador over alleged spying on Jews

Man arrested in Denmark accused of collecting information on ‘Jewish localities and specific Jewish individuals in Berlin’

Germany has summoned the Iranian ambassador after the arrest of a man suspected of spying on Jews in Berlin for Tehran, possibly as part of an attack plo…[Read more]

BOJ policymaker calls for resuming rate hikes after temporary pause

The Bank of Japan should resume interest rate hikes following a temporary pause to evaluate the impact of U.S. tariffs, board member Hajime Takata said, signalling optimism the country was on track to durably achieve the central bank’s price goal.
While the BOJ must take its time…[Read more]

Is Japan a Transit Point for Fentanyl?

A synthetic opioid so powerful it can kill with a single tablet is threatening to strain relations between Japan and the United States. Fentanyl, a drug originally developed as a medical anesthetic, has become a national crisis in the U.S. due to its high potency and addictive nature. Now, reports suggest it…[Read more]

China to allow resumption of some seafood imports from Japan

China has said it will allow the import of some seafood products from Japan to resume, a partial lifting of the blanket ban imposed following Tokyo’s release of wastewater from a wrecked Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in 2023.
The decision came after Japan’s government promised to…[Read more]

Japan launches a climate change monitoring satellite on mainstay H2A rocket’s last flight

Japan on Sunday successfully launched a climate change monitoring satellite on its mainstay H-2A rocket, which made its final flight before it is replaced by a new flagship model designed to be more cost competitive in the global space market.

The H-2A r…[Read more]

Japan executes by hanging ‘Twitter killer’ who murdered 9

Takahiro Shiraishi was hanged for the murders of eight women and one man whose body parts he concealed in his small apartment.

Japan has executed a man who was found guilty of killing and dismembering nine people he made contact with on social media, the first use of capital pun…[Read more]

Megaquake may hit central Japan within next 30 years, government panel says

Marine active faults off Japan’s Kinki western region and Hokuriku central region are projected to trigger an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or larger at a probability of 16% to 18% within the next 30 years, according to a government panel.
The government’s Earthquake…[Read more]

Six Arrested over Modified Lamborghini

A Lamborghini sports car modified to shoot flames from its exhaust was fraudulently passed through vehicle inspection without proper testing, leading to the arrest of six people including a custom shop owner and a senior inspector.

The illegally altered Lamborghini, a rare model of which only 100 exist…[Read more]

Berlin to simplify rules in bid to speed up defence surge, draft law says

The German government seeks to speed up defence procurement by simplifying legal procedures, fostering European cooperation and facilitating orders to start-ups to make its military combat-ready, according to a draft law seen by Reuters late on Friday.
The speedy surge of…[Read more]

Germany updates: Lawmakers curb refugee family reunification

Lawmakers have voted to suspend family reunification rights for refugees who do not hold full asylum status. Meanwhile, as Germany faces labor shortages, figures show much of its workforce is untapped.

SPD’s Klingbeil re-elected but not without internal dissent

Lars Klingbeil was r…[Read more]

Teen in Germany charged over Taylor Swift stadium plot

German federal prosecutors have charged a teenager with aiding in the preparation of a suspected terrorist attack targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna last summer.

Germany’s Federal Prosecutor’s Office in Karlsruhe on Friday said judges had indicted a teenager accused of having helped…[Read more]

Japan scraps US meeting after Washington demands more defense spending -FT

Japan has canceled a regular high-level meeting with its key ally the United States after the Trump administration demanded it spend more on defense, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had been expected…[Read more]

German military deems Russia ‘existential risk’ to nation and Europe, Spiegel reports

The German military deems Russia an “existential risk” to the country and Europe, according to a Spiegel news magazine report that cites a new Bundeswehr strategy paper.
The confidential document warns that the Kremlin is aligning both its industrial and…[Read more]

Germany, England and France in talks with Iran

Foreign ministers meet in Geneva to discuss Tehran’s nuclear programme

As the war between Israel and Iran enters its second week, three European foreign ministers are meeting today with their Iranian counterpart in Geneva, Switzerland, in an effort to de-escalate the situation. One of the aims of J…[Read more]

Germany updates: Population growth on the decline

As of the end of 2024, Germany’s population stood at just under 83.6 million, an increase of 121,000 compared to the previous year. This marks a slowdown from 2023, when the numbers grew by 338,000.

Germany says US tariffs costing millions daily amid trade talks

German Economy Minister Katherina…[Read more]