*German politics

Germany's Left Party was expelled from the Bundestag yesterday after its members held up signs bearing the names of Afghan civilians killed in a German-ordered airstrike last September.
The protest came in the middle of a parliamentary debate on extending Germany’s nine-year military mission to Afghanistan by a further year.
Some 429 MPs voted for and 111 against the new mandate – 16 fewer votes in favour than last time – allowing troop numbers to be increased by 850 to 5,350.
The opposition Green Party abstained and, after being re-admitted, the Left Party MPs contributed to the 111 votes against the mandate
A majority of the German population want soldiers to pull out of Afghanistan: Germany's Left Party expelled from Bundestag - (Feb 28, 2010)

Fischer and Schröder are sparring once again. Although the subject of their spat has changed -- from political power to pipelines -- the contours are still more or less the same.

The former chancellor is working with the Russians, and his pipeline is called Nord Stream. The former foreign minister is working against the Russians, and his pipeline is called Nabucco. The two men are playing a modern-day version of the Great Game, the 19th-century struggle between Britain and Russia over control of Central Asia. This time around, the game involves the energy supply of the future and a finite resource: natural gas.

Who has the longer pipeline? The eternal rivalry of Joschka Fischer and Gerhard Schroder - (Feb 15, 2010)

About 25 countries have promised to send more troops to Afghanistan in response to President Obama's call for extra support from Nato members. But France and Germany, the two European powers who could make a real difference, remain as hesitant as ever.


This is not about just about pre-empting future terrorist attacks on European capitals by stopping the Taliban from retaking the country. At stake in Afghanistan is the survival of the transatlantic alliance, Europe's energy security and independence, and whether the deepening ties between Europe – especially Germany – and Russia, will eventually lead to the western integration of Russia, or instead, to it gaining a stranglehold over European energy security. In Afghanistan all three issues are interlinked. This fact remains largely ignored.
The real strakes in the Afghan war - (Dec 10, 2010)