Bundestag passes law paving way for EU reform treaty
The EU's Lisbon reform treaty took a significant step closer to coming into force on Tuesday as Germany's parliament passed a revised law paving the way to its ratification.
Day: September 8, 2009
Germany
Germany
Germany rehabilitates Third Reich wartime ‘traitors’
The German parliament voted Tuesday to lift Nazi-era convictions of wartime "traitors" whose names, 70 years after the fighting started, had still not been cleared.
Germany
Teen from Winnenden school massacre had killing fantasies
The teenage boy responsible for the Winnenden school massacre in southwestern Germany last March was apparently haunted by killing fantasies long before his rampage left 15 people dead.
Germany
German education spending ranks low in international study
Germany invests less money in education than almost all other industrialised nations, according to a new study presented on Tuesday in Berlin by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Germany
German trade surplus surges as output drops
Germany's trade surplus soared in July as its export engine revved up, official data showed on Tuesday, but a drop in industrial output signalled that economic recovery is fragile.
Germany
Merkel defends German mission in Afghanistan
German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday defended Berlin’s military deployment in Afghanistan and rejected “prejudgement” of a controversial NATO air strike called by the Bundeswehr last week.
Sweden
Söderling hoping to lead Swedish revival
Borg, Wilander and Edberg are long gone and it's dark days for Swedish tennis, but in Robin Söderling there are at least some rays of hope.
Germany
Knut’s Italian girlfriend Gianna arrives in Berlin
A new Italian girlfriend for Berlin’s famous polar bear Knut arrived on Tuesday along with two other bears from Munich’s Hellabrunn Zoo.
Sweden
Geely confirms Volvo interest
Chinese car giant Geely confirmed on Tuesday that it is considering a bid for Ford's Swedish subsidiary Volvo Cars, Bloomberg reports.
Sweden
Four billion extra pledged in fight against crime
The Swedish government has allocated an additional 4 billion kronor ($570 million) to the fight against crime in a bid to achieve the governing parties' pledge to have 20,000 police officers on Sweden's streets by 2010, according to a statement.
Sweden
Playboy poser strikes again
A looming jail sentence didn't stop a 31-year-old Swedish woman found guilty of defrauding several men she met online from luring other unsuspecting victims out of their money with sob stories and images of Playboy models.
Germany
Germany set to face England in historic women’s Euro 2009 final
After beating Norway 3-1 in the semi-final in Helsinki, the German women’s football team faces England in the final of the Euro 2009 tournament in Finland on Thursday night.
Sweden
Swedish politician mulls Thai bows to counter swine flu
While several local parishes of the Church of Sweden are advocating the use of fortified wine to prevent the spread of swine flu during communion, a Swedish politician is proposing a different measure to prevent the virus from spreading - the introduction of traditional Thai greetings in an effort to reduce direct contact.
Germany
Border town plans to fight prostitutes with stinky acid
A small community in Brandenburg said on Tuesday that it wants to protect its image by discouraging streetwalking by prostitutes by using “all available means” – including fatty acid smelling like vomit and secret cameras.
Sweden
Saab loses out in Brazil fighter plane bid
Brazil has announced it will order 36 Rafale combat planes from France, beating out Sweden's bid to sell Saab's Gripen to the South American nation. The announcement was made on Monday during French president Nicolas Sarkozy's state visit to Brasília.
Sweden
Söderling slips into US Open quarter finals
Swedish number one Robin Söderling booked a place in the quarter finals of the US open on Monday after his opponent, Russia's Nikolay Davydenko, was forced to abandon due to injury.
Germany
Bavarian woman claims to own world’s oldest dog
News has spread quickly that the world’s oldest dog, a dachshund-mix named "Chanel," recently died at the age of 21. Now a Bavarian woman claims that her dog Penny is actually even older.
Sweden
Pernod Ricard to sell Vin & Sprit
French alcohol group Pernod Ricard, which last year purchased the Vin & Sprit (V&S) group from the Swedish state for 55 billion Swedish kronor ($8.88 billion), has announced it intends to keep Absolut Vodka but will sell off the rest of the Swedish drinks group.
Sweden
Swedes reported arrested in Pakistan
The Swedish embassy in Pakistan is investigating media reports that three Swedes have been arrested by the Pakistani military.
Sweden
Shanghai car maker to join Saab deal: report
Koenigsegg Group has informed the Swedish government that it has finally put together the financial package necessary to purchase Saab Automobile from General Motors.
Germany
German and French telecoms joining to dominate UK market
Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom have launched exclusive talks to merge their British units to become Britain's top mobile operator, the German telecommunications group said Tuesday in a statement.
Sweden
Swedes drinking more smuggled liquor
Swedes are buying less beer abroad, but are consuming twice as much smuggled liquor compared to the first half of 2008, according to a new report from the Centre for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs (Centrum för socialvetenskaplig alkohol- och drogforskning – SoRAD) at Stockholm University.
Sweden
Paintings removed for EU foreign minister meeting
Two paintings by Swedish artist Dick Bengtsson (1936-1989) were removed at the weekend when EU foreign ministers attended a meeting at the Moderna Museet contemporary art museum in Stockholm.
Germany
S-Bahn repairs create Berlin commuter chaos
Tens of thousands of Berlin commuters faced heavy delays on Tuesday morning as the city’s S-Bahn train service announced last-minute technical problems that left only one-quarter of its fleet on the rails.
Germany
German wages stagnate at bottom of EU study
Wages are rising more slowly in Germany than all other European Union countries, according to a new study published by daily Die Welt on Tuesday.