Tag - germany

 
 

GERMANY

A Nishiyama Seimen employee works at its factory in Sapporo.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Oct 26, 2025
Japanese firms keep expanding in Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia
Around 650 Japanese companies maintain a presence in the area, with the latest arrivals varying from tech startups to noodle makers.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (left) and French President Emmanuel Macron. Germany and France are supporting a push to discuss China’s increasingly restrictive trade measures at a European Union leaders’ summit in Brussels on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 22, 2025
Germany and France back China trade discussion at EU summit
The bloc is scrambling to protect its industries from a glut of subsidized Chinese competition and Beijing's recently announced export controls on rare earths.
Japan has made several exceptions to its arms export rules in recent years as part of a broader retreat from the pacifist stance it adopted after its defeat in World War II.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 17, 2025
Kawasaki Heavy in talks to develop engines for Germany's Taurus missiles
The involvement of a Japanese partner could complicate matters due to Tokyo's ban on transfers of weapons to countries in conflict.
A tram carriage displays a recruitment advertisement for the German armed forces in Berlin on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 16, 2025
Conscription row mars Germany's push to beef up deterrence
Disagreements have emerged within Germany's ruling coalition over whether to use a draft lottery or a purely voluntary approach in an effort to boost military recruitment.
Refugees and migrants, mostly from Syria and Afghanistan, crowd a platform at a train station in Budapest in September 2015. Hungary's focus on pro-natalist policies and minimal immigration has led to a significant improvement in its fertility rate compared to Japan.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 15, 2025
Asia can learn from Europe’s immigration mistakes
The result is dangerous confusion where legitimate policy debates about labor shortages become entangled with xenophobic fears about cultural invasion.
German Patriot air-defense systems are seen at Vilnius Airport in Lithuania in July 2023.
WORLD
Oct 5, 2025
Lithuania's Vilnius Airport reopens after suspension over balloons in airspace
European aviation has been thrown into chaos in recent weeks by drone sightings and air incursions, including at airports in Copenhagen and Munich.
German Chancellor and the leader of Germany's Christian Democratic Union Friedrich Merz addresses the media in Duesseldorf, Germany, on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 30, 2025
Merz's ambitions for Germany's role in EU put him at odds with von der Leyen
The German chancellor is trying to tug power back to Berlin, publicly rebuking the European Union’s top executive on issues like trade, the EU budget, green policy and defense.
A banner stating, "If they commit any acts of evil, they will definitely get a harder blow back," is displayed in Tehran in April.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 28, 2025
'Snapback' sends West back to the drawing board on Iran's nuclear program
Despite a last-minute rush of diplomatic activity at the U.N., Iran has done little to stop the sanctions from going back into effect.
Japan has many positive qualities for German companies, but the market does face some challenges, such as talent acquisition and retention, particularly as demand for skilled workers grows, a survey by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan showed.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 22, 2025
German companies choosing Japan as Asia manufacturing hub: survey
The country is valued for its stability, affordability and proximity to other major markets, according to the survey by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visits the Henkel AG factory in Dusseldorf, western Germany, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 15, 2025
German far right triples support in vote in Merz home state
The trend intensifies pressure on the German chancellor’s government to revive growth and push through reforms.
A staff member works in the lab of Hobum Oleochemicals, a manufacturer that develops sustainable chemical raw materials derived from renewable plant oils, in Hamburg, Germany, on Aug. 25.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 4, 2025
Trump's tariffs threaten to choke European chemicals recovery
The sector has been grappling in recent years with high production costs after gas and power prices soared following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Iraqi refugee Humam al-Gburi, 34, and retired nurse Ursula Panke, 85, in Altena, Germany, on July 15. Since Humam's arrival in 2015, he has been supported by Ursula, who volunteers as his mentor.
WORLD / Society
Sep 2, 2025
German town that welcomed migrants finds adding people won't fix fundamentals
Political failure to tackle rising inflation, job losses in the auto industry and a sense of economic decline now makes migrants a target for the anti-immigrant AfD.
Volunteers identify the bodies of fallen soldiers in Dobropillya, Ukraine, on Aug. 23. In an interview on Sunday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he is bracing himself for the possibility that the war in Ukraine could go on for a long time.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 1, 2025
Merz sees war in Ukraine dragging on with no clear end in sight
The German chancellor says he hasn’t given up hope that a ceasefire can be secured in Ukraine, but he’s "not under any illusions either.”
French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attend a joint news conference in Toulon, France, on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 30, 2025
German and French leaders push for secondary sanctions on Russian backers
The two European leaders are increasing pressure on Moscow as U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace efforts sputter.
French President Emmanuel Macron, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a photo session in The Hague on June 25
WORLD / Politics
Aug 27, 2025
French, German and Polish leaders to visit Moldova in show of force to Russia
The leaders will meet Moldova's President Maia Sandu to celebrate the country's 34th independence day as she pushes for EU membership.
A worker operates machinery at a sawmill in Sundsvall, Sweden
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2025
Tariff uncertainty leaves European companies with tough decisions
There are difficult conversations with American customers about pricing and hard choices to be made about where to invest in.
Founded in 1948, Puma reported €281.6 million in net income last year and €8.8 billion in sales, and counts a global workforce of roughly 22,000.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 26, 2025
Pinault family is exploring options for Puma, including a sale
Puma has been trying to revamp itself under new CEO Arthur Hoeld after failing to generate much enthusiasm for its products with consumers in recent years.
A billboard displays an ad for the German armed forces in Berlin on Wednesday. The advertising slogan reads: "Standing up for our democracy. Every morning."
WORLD / FOCUS
Aug 24, 2025
Germany is one step closer to reviving military conscription
A law headed for Cabinet approval on Wednesday seeks to boost Bundeswehr recruitment to help deter Russia and defend European allies.
Reigen, Germany's first sake brewery, makes a diverse, nontraditional range of sake that includes fruit-flavored sips and wine barrel-aged renditions.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Aug 22, 2025
Germany's first sakemaker offers a bold brew of ideas
Yellowish and high in acidity, German sake won't please the purists, but open-minded consumers, especially wine drinkers, may find something appealing.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (left) and Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya attend a joint press event at the Iikura Guest House in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 18, 2025
Top Japanese and German diplomats vow to boost economic security cooperation
Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya and his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul, have agreed to strengthen supply chains for semiconductors and critical minerals.

Longform

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Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell