Russia is currently tracking two satellites used by the German military, according to German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

German lawmakers have approved legislation that will make it easier for transgender, intersex and nonbinary people to change their name and gender in official records.

German lawmakers have approved cuts to fuel subsidies for farmers that prompted angry protests, along with a 2024 budget the government had to revamp after a court ruling blew a hole in its financial plans.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has promised quick action to fix a budget crisis after a court decision blew a large hole in the almost-finished plan for next year.

Germany’s Cabinet has approved a draft 2024 budget that foresees lower spending with defense among the exceptions.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has warned Beijing against using force to change the status quo with Taiwan and expressed concern about the human rights situation in China.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has defended a deal to stop migrants from entering the European Union until their chances of getting asylum have been reviewed, arguing that the bloc’s existing arrangement is “completely dysfunctional.”.

A German opposition party has launched a legal challenge to an electoral reform that is designed to reduce the size of the country’s increasingly bloated parliament.

Germany’s main opposition party has launched an effort to expel from its ranks a former head of the country’s intelligence agency, weeks after he complained of what he said was a move toward “eliminatory racism against whites.”.

Germany’s parliament has approved a resolution recognizing as genocide Ukraine’s 1930s “Holodomor” — a famine believed to have killed more than 3 million Ukrainians under the repressive rule of Soviet leader Josef Stalin.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says the country is well-placed to get through this winter with enough energy thanks to his efforts to shore up supplies.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says he wants to discuss the outlines of a “Marshall plan for Ukraine” with the leaders of the Group of Seven countries at their upcoming summit.

German lawmakers have approved a $107-billion special fund to strengthen the country’s military.

Germany’s president has called for a debate over plans for compulsory coronavirus vaccinations in the country, saying such a drastic measure needs to be thoroughly justified.

Germany’s ruling parties are hitting the brakes on plans for compulsory coronavirus vaccinations, saying it may take months for lawmakers to properly debate the contentious measure in parliament.

The seats in Germany’s parliament will have to be rearranged after lawmakers backed the wish of one party in the new coalition government not to sit next to the far-right Alternative for Germany.

A three-party deal to form a new German government under center-left leader Olaf Scholz has cleared its final hurdle.

Germany has approved new measures to rein in record coronavirus infections as Chancellor Angela Merkel has called the pandemic situation in the country “really worrying” and demanded “consequent action” to contain the spread of the virus.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel says people have a duty to get vaccinated against the coronavirus to protect others.

Angela Merkel took a step closer to political retirement Tuesday after receiving her formal dismissal certificate from the post of chancellor after 16 years in office.

Germany's weekend election has made the country's lower house of parliament more diverse and inclusive than ever before.

Pressure is growing for a quick start to talks on Germany’s next government as newly elected lawmakers hold their first meetings and tensions simmer in outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s bloc, which declined to its worst-ever result in the country's election.

The center-left Social Democrats have won the biggest share of the vote in Germany’s national election, beating outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right Union bloc in a closely fought race.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged Germans to accept nationwide pandemic restrictions that took effect at midnight.

Germany's constitutional court has removed a potential obstacle to Europe's pandemic stimulus.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged parliament to pass a bill that would mandate a nationwide “emergency brake” when the spread of the coronavirus becomes too rapid, saying that it is needed to prevent the country’s health care system from becoming overwhelmed.

FILE - In this Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021 file photo Tareq Alaows, who is running to become a lawmaker at the German parliament Bundestag poses in front of the Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, file)BERLIN – A Syrian man who came to Germany as an asylum-seeker in 2015 and was running for a seat in parliament in his new country's September election said Tuesday that he is withdrawing his candidacy. “The high threat level for me but especially for people close to me is the most important reason for withdrawing my candidacy,” Alaows wrote, without elaborating. AdBefore fleeing to Germany, Alaows participated in peaceful protests against Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government while studying law at the University of Aleppo. Alaows, who is fluent in German and works as a legal counselor for asylum-seekers, said he wanted to give a voice to the country’s asylum-seekers in parliament.

The spread of more contagious virus variants has pushed hospitals in some EU countries to their limit. That, combined with the lack of vaccines available in Europe, has pushed several EU nations to impose strict lockdown measures over the Easter holidays. An EU source said while the bloc had allowed 21 million vaccine doses to be exported to the U.K. since Dec. 1, while none had come to the EU from Britain. Overall, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU had allowed exports totaling 77 million vaccine doses, proof that the bloc should not be accused of vaccine nationalism. Based on the EU's contracts with manufacturers, the commission expressed confidence that 360 million vaccine doses will be delivered during the second quarter of the year.

Surrounded by guards German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center, leaves the German parliament Bundestag after the answers questions from lawmakers in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)BERLIN – Germany's Cabinet on Wednesday approved 2022 budget plans that will see rules against running up new debt suspended for the third consecutive year as the government seeks to help Europe's biggest economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic. The government foresees spending of 419.8 billion euros ($499 billion) next year, down from 547.7 billion euros this year. Finance Minister Olaf Scholz's plans call for new borrowing of 81.5 billion euros in 2022, compared with 240.2 billion euros this year. AdThe country's so-called debt brake was suspended to allow up to 217.8 billion euros in new borrowing last year.

A package of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is shown in the state of Brandenburg where the first coronavirus vaccinations are given in doctors' surgeries, in Senftenberg, Germany, Wednesday, March 3, 2021. The decision is “good news for older people who are waiting for a vaccination," German Health Minister Jens Spahn said. The German panel said its new guidance also suggests waiting 12 weeks between administering the first and second AstraZeneca shots, as studies show this increases the vaccine's effectiveness. Britain, which has had a notably successful vaccination rollout, has been going with the 12-week spacing for vaccine shots since last year. France, Belgium and Italy already loosened their age restrictions for the AstraZeneca vaccine earlier this week as European nations scramble to confront a looming third spike in COVID-19 cases.

(AP Photo/Michael Sohn)BERLIN – The German government decided Thursday to temporarily reinstate border controls along its southeastern frontier after designating the Czech Republic and parts of Austria as “mutation areas" due to their high number of variant coronavirus cases, German news agency dpa reported. The temporary border controls and certain entry restrictions will start Sunday at midnight, dpa reported. It was not clear for how long the border controls would last. He praised measures taken by the Czech Republic to contain the spread of virus variants and criticized authorities in Tyrol, saying they appeared not to be taking the issue seriously. “The virus doesn’t follow dates, the virus follows infections numbers,” she told lawmakers.

One topic of the meeting are the current developments of the new coronavirus pandemic in Germany. Parliament had authorized 217.8 billion euros in new borrowing. Government spending last year totaled 443.4 billion euros, below the 508.5 billion euros that was forecast, the Finance Ministry said Tuesday. “Germany is in comparatively good shape because we acted quickly and strongly in the budget,” Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said in a statement. The economic development is better, job losses are smaller, tax income is higher and new borrowing significantly lower than was forecast at times.”Critics say that aid has been too complex and flowed too slowly.

German Health Minister Jens Spahn delivers a speech during a meeting of the German federal parliament, Bundestag, at the Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021 on the current developments of the new coronavirus pandemic in Germany. At left is German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Germany has also ordered 56 million doses from AstraZeneca and more than 100 million from manufacturers whose vaccines have yet to be approved in the EU. But this delayed the start of the vaccination campaign compared to other countries. The country's disease control agency reported 19,600 newly confirmed coronavirus infections in the past day, and 1,060 deaths.

From left, French President Emmanuel Macron, Norway's Prime Minister Erna Solberg, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Poland's President Andrzej Duda and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. World leaders including Macron, Merkel, Solberg and Stoltenberg, are condemning the storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco, File)Reaction from around the world to the storming of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump:___“A fundamental rule of democracy is that, after elections, there are winners and losers. ——“The rampage at the Capitol yesterday was a disgraceful act and it must be vigorously condemned.” — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Democracy presupposes peaceful protest, but violence and death threats —from Left or Right— are ALWAYS wrong.” — Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa.

FILE - In this Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019 file photo a staff member holds a Huawei 'Mate20 X 5G' smartphone at the IFA 2019 tech fair in Berlin, Germany. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Cabinet approved a bill Wednesday that would require companies involved in setting up critical infrastructure such as high-speed 5G networks to guarantee that their equipment can't be used for sabotage, espionage or terrorism. The bill, which now goes to parliament, seeks to address concerns that vendors such as Chinese tech company Huawei might pose a security risk if they have access to core parts of the German telecoms network. “This law concerns fundamental questions of IT security and not individual manufacturers,” Steffen Seibert told reporters in Berlin. “Huawei will continue to work transparently with regulators, customers, and industry organizations to ensure the security of mobile networks.”___Kelvin Chan in London contributed to this report.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, center in red dress, delivers her speech during the debate about Germany's budget 2021, at the parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)BERLIN – Germany's next parliamentary election, which will determine the country's new leader after Chancellor Angela Merkel's long rule, will be held on Sept. 26, 2021. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier's office said Wednesday that the head of state set the date in line with a recommendation from the government. That may not happen until well after the election, because the process of putting together a governing coalition can be lengthy. After the 2017 election, it was nearly six months before Merkel was sworn in for her fourth term — a record.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, casts her vote after the debate about Germany's budget 2021, at the parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020. But while restrictions imposed in November have slowed the exponential rise in cases, the numbers keep creeping up. Saxony's economy minister, Martin Dulig, likewise appealed to people to follow the rules in the state, long a stronghold of the far right. “It can't be right that the regions that reject masks and measures most strongly have the highest infection numbers,” he said. Merkel cautioned this week that the first coronavirus vaccine may not be available in Germany until early next year.

Merkel and the country's 16 state governors have agreed to extend a partial shutdown well into December in an effort to further reduce the rate of coronavirus infections ahead of the Christmas period. “In the fight against the pandemic it's not about health or economy, health or education, health or culture, health or social contacts, it's about all of these things,” she said. It still has a lower death rate than several other European countries, and its current shutdown has been relatively mild. Merkel said with several promising vaccines nearing approval, possibly before Christmas, people had reason for optimism. Merkel's chief of staff, Helge Braun, told RTL television that it was likely that some restrictions were likely to remain in place through March, as the vaccine was rolled out.

“The winter will be difficult, four long, difficult months. Under new restrictions going into effect Monday, German restaurants, bars, sports and cultural venues will be shut for four weeks. Merkel said authorities had no choice but to drastically reduce social contacts as three-quarters of infections in Germany now are no longer traceable. “Despite a difficult epidemiological situation, right now we’re much better prepared for working during an epidemic,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said. Russia has recorded more than 1.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases, the highest number in Europe and the fourth largest tally worldwide.