Sabine Kinkartz

Delayed, unreliable and forced into long detours due to construction: Germany can no longer shine when it comes to rail travel — and this is unlikely to change anytime soon. The company is mired in a deep crisis.

More money for the military, less for everything else, while debt continues to grow rapidly: such is Germany's draft budget for 2027. The Cabinet has approved it, now it needs to pass in parliament.

With tax revenues down and social spending up, more and more cities and towns in the Ruhrgebiet are struggling to make ends meet. One city that is particularly deep in the red is Oberhausen.

With tax revenues down and social spending up, more and more cities and towns in the Ruhrgebiet are struggling to make ends meet. One city that is particularly deep in the red is Oberhausen.

Former Health Minister Jens Spahn of the conservative CDU, who opposed legalizing surrogacy in Germany, has become a father with the help of a surrogate mother in the US.

Jens Spahn, a key ally of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, is stepping down amid a controversy surrounding his decision to have a child via a surrogate mother. He had opposed legalizing surrogacy in Germany.

Jens Spahn, a key ally of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, is stepping down amid a controversy surrounding his decision to have a child via a surrogate mother. He had opposed legalizing surrogacy in Germany.

Thorsten Frei, a close confidant of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, is taking over the role as parliamentary group leader for the conservative CDU/CSU bloc. The position is a powerful one.

The Social Democratic Party SPD is sinking ever deeper into crisis. Voters are turning away, while unrest is growing within its grassroots ranks. Will the upcoming state elections accelerate the party's downward spiral?

More than half of German citizens believe that Germany's security is threatened by Russia, according to the latest ARD Deutschlandtrend survey.