From the historic German protest slogan “Ami, go home!” (Yankee, go home!) against the presence of American troops in Germany, to the “Ami goes home” (the Yankee goes home), the new phrase coined by the German press to refer to the partial withdrawal of American troops announced this week by Washington. In German, “Ami” is a colloquial and abbreviated way of saying “Amerikaner”, American.

On Friday, May 8, in the midst of the commemoration of the 81st anniversary of the end of the Second World War in Europe, it was evident that Germany will soon be the main European military power again. Next year its defense spending will be equivalent to that of France and Great Britain combined, and the plan is for it to be considerably higher by 2030. The declared objective of the German government is to have "the most powerful conventional army in Europe." It is true that France and Great Britain have nuclear weapons, but this means less money for other defense materials. Therefore, the question is not "will this come true?"; if there are no unforeseen events, it will come true. The question, especially on this solemn anniversary, is: "How can we ensure that, this time, the growth of German military power is positive for all of Europe?"

A bank robbery in Sinzing, in western Germany, has forced a major police deployment in the town center, according to media outlets such as the newspaper Bild and the news portal T-Online. The robbers have taken several hostages, including a cash transport driver, German police assure.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz marks his first year at the head of the federal government this Wednesday. More than a celebration, it will be a bitter anniversary. His first year in the Chancellery has been marked by his strong unpopularity, constant tensions within the governing coalition with the Social Democrats, criticism of his own party, the rise of the far-right, and his confrontation with US President Donald Trump. Added to this is a slight slowdown in the German economy due to the war in Iran and the announcement of welfare state cuts.

The German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, does not believe that German-American relations are in crisis, following the announcement by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, that he will withdraw 5,000 soldiers from Germany. Washington made this decision on Friday amid a public dispute between Trump and the chancellor over the United States and Israel's war against Iran. “Perhaps it is being exaggerated a bit, but [the withdrawal of soldiers] is nothing new”, Merz stated on Sunday night in an interview with the public broadcaster ARD, one year after his arrival at the chancellery and the content of which was anticipated by the German press.

The war in the Middle East and the new world disorder driven from the White House by Donald Trump has losers. The biggest losers are the populations suffering bombardments and embargoes and blockades. But there are also those who win. And by a lot. Some are those who play on event prediction platforms, as is the case with Polymarket. And also those who bet on markets based on the unpredictable statements of the US President, Donald Trump. More than one has fattened their portfolio with these plays with a certain aroma of insider information.

Portuguese fado, a European music, recurrently speaks of a feeling that now makes us think of Europe's political moment with the United States: an old love, which has turned into pain, into mistreatment, but which is hard to let go of. In essence, geopolitics is also a story of loves and dislikes and, therefore, of divorces.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has personally experienced that disagreeing with the President of the United States, Donald Trump, or criticizing his decisions can have consequences. The hyperactive Trump has announced that he will withdraw 5,000 soldiers from his military bases in Germany, a NATO ally country, as announced by the Pentagon. Washington had already threatened to withdraw troops after Merz criticized the war of the United States and Israel against Iran, which has infuriated the Republican, who has since focused his recurring contempt for European allies on Berlin, although also on Madrid and Rome.

The British general and diplomat Hastings Ismay, first NATO Secretary General (1952-1957), said that the Atlantic Alliance had been created to "keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down". This famous phrase well summarised NATO's objectives during the Cold War: to prevent Soviet expansion, to guarantee the United States' commitment to European security, and to keep the Germans under control after the Nazi defeat in World War II, in order to avoid a resurgence of German nationalist militarism. Seven decades later, Russia continues to be a danger to Europe, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, threatens to reduce its military presence on the Old Continent and Germany is rearming. To do so, however, it sacrifices part of the welfare state.

The relations between Berlin and Washington are not going through their best moment, after the exchange of mutual criticism between President Donald Trump and Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Trump threatened on Wednesday to withdraw American troops from Germany, after Merz's repeated criticism of the United States and Israel's war against Iran and its exit strategy from this conflict. “The United States is studying and analyzing the possible reduction of troops in Germany and a decision will be made in a short period,” Trump said on his official Truth Social account.

The government of Friedrich Merz has presented Germany's budget for 2027, with a historic figure: Berlin will once again allocate a record amount to the defense budget in a turbulent international context, marked by the war in Iran and also in Ukraine. According to the accounts presented this Wednesday by the Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor, Lars Klingbeil, this year the German state foresees a total expenditure of 543.3 billion euros, 3.6% more than in the 2026 budget, while total revenues will be 398.4 billion euros.

Friedrich Merz's government has presented Germany's budget for 2027, with a historic figure: a record amount will once again be allocated to the defense budget. According to the accounts presented this Wednesday by the Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor, Lars Klingbeil, this year the German state foresees a total expenditure of 543.3 billion euros, 3.6% more than in the 2026 budget, and with new debt of 110.8 billion euros. Nevertheless, Merz's government is tightening its belt on the welfare state.

The name of Marie-Louise Eta (Dresden, 1991) has already been etched in the world of football. She has become the first woman to manage a men's team within the top five leagues (England, Spain, Italy, Germany, and France). She arrives at the Union Berlin bench with the mission to turn around the difficult situation they are going through. The team is not in the relegation zone, but they have been in a very bad dynamic for a few months. They had a good first half of the season and reached Christmas in eighth place, close to European spots. However, since then, results have worsened: out of the last 16 matches, they have only won two.

The popularity of German Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz has fallen to historic lows in Germany. Merz has achieved something that seemed difficult when he arrived at the Chancellery almost a year ago: in a few months, he has become more unpopular than his predecessor in office, the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz. According to a Forsa survey for RTL and NTV, 80% of Germans are dissatisfied with Merz's management. Only 18% (two percentage points less) of respondents are satisfied with the work of the Christian Democrat Chancellor.

The war between the United States and Israel against Iran has reactivated internal disputes within the German far-right. Within Alternative for Germany (AfD), a Trumpist wing coexists with a critical sector that increasingly distances itself from the occupant of the White House. The far-right party sought to get closer to Trump after his return to the White House. They share with him the rejection of immigration, climate change denial, and criticism of the European Union. However, with the start of the war against Iran, AfD leaders are again trying to distance themselves from Washington.

The German Social Democratic Party (SPD) is mired in an internal crisis after suffering two major electoral defeats in two weeks. in the regional elections of Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-WürttembergThe leaders of the SPD, Bärbel Bas and Lars Klingbeil, rejected calls for their resignation within their own party on Monday, despite acknowledging that the election results in Rhineland-Palatinate were "catastrophic." A crisis meeting of the SPD leadership will be held on Friday, but personnel issues will not be discussed. "We will not plunge the second-largest party in the government into chaos now, nor will we enter into a process where we focus on ourselves and neglect the country," said Klingbeil, who cited the difficult political situation and the looming global economic crisis to justify his stance. The SPD was one of the biggest losers in the Baden-Württemberg state elections on March 8, obtaining 5.5% of the vote, its worst result to date in that federal state. Below 5%, it would not have gained any parliamentary representation in the state parliament. The Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the party of conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz, He won the regional elections in Rhineland-Palatinate on Sunday, ending 35 years of Social Democratic presidents in that federal state.

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) is poised to win the regional parliamentary elections in the southwestern German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, according to projections based on the vote count. Pending final results, conservative candidate Gordon Schneider is projected to win with 31% of the vote, defeating incumbent Social Democrat Alexander Schweitzer, who is expected to garner 25.9%. The CDU, the party of conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz, would wrest control of the state government from the Social Democrats (SPD), dealing a significant blow to the party after 35 years in power. The Social Democrats lose their red stronghold: they had governed since 1991.

The United Kingdom faces a decisive decade for its energy future at a time when most of its nuclear fleet is nearing the end of its lifespan due to aging. Currently, the country generates approximately 15% of its electricity from nuclear power, thanks to an installed capacity of around 6.5 gigawatts, generated by nine reactors at four plants. But all but one must be decommissioned by 2030. This has forced the British government to accelerate a political and financial commitment to a new generation of power plants, a commitment that is fraught with controversy and challenges. Currently, the UK is building two major projects: Hinkley Point C in Somerset and Sizewell C in Suffolk. Both, the first new plants built since 1988, symbolize both the ambition and the difficulties of the British nuclear model. With estimated costs reaching €54.57 billion for the first and €43.23 billion for the second, these plants have become some of the most expensive energy infrastructure projects in the world, as the Working Group on Nuclear Regulation, established by Keir Starmer the previous February, warned at the end of November of last year. The cost overruns and delays have been so significant that EDF, the French state-owned company in charge of building Sizewell C, has accumulated multimillion-euro losses and has demanded that the British government assume almost all the financial risk for the project to move forward. Hinkley Point C is expected to come online between 2030 and 2031; Sizewell C, in 2035-36. The Working Group also warned that the UK has become the most expensive country in the world to build a nuclear power plant, not so much because of the technology used, but because of an accumulation of environmental, safety, and administrative processes that, according to the report, often do not provide real benefits in terms of public health or environmental protection. The document denounced a regulatory culture that is excessively risk-averse, which has resulted in thousands of pages of environmental impact assessments and increasingly lengthy and unpredictable planning processes.

Friedrich Merz is now speaking frankly. The German Chancellor initially showed understanding for the US and Israeli attacks against Iran. However, as the days passed, he nuanced his position. Now, three weeks after the start of the offensive, he rules out any German involvement in the conflict—unlike what US President Donald Trump is demanding—and proclaims: "It's not our war."

Germany's super-election year kicks off with a razor-thin victory for the Greens in the Baden-Württemberg state parliament elections over the conservatives, while the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is projected to become the third-largest party in the state, according to ARD television. The Greens are projected to have won 30.3% of the vote, slightly ahead of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) with 29.7%, pending final results. Meanwhile, the AfD, which campaigned on security and immigration issues and capitalized on voters' fears about the deteriorating economy, is projected to improve its results, rising from 9.7% in 2021 to 18.7%.