Tag Archives: Angela Merkel

GERMANY: Green Party Demands Marriage Equality As Their Condition For Joining Coalition Government

Reuters reports: Germany’s Greens are open to working with any party except the right-wing Alternative for Germany after a September vote but will list gay marriage as a condition, which could make it tricky to work with Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives. The Greens, which also named climate protection as their price for participating in government, could be a kingmaker in …

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Germany Grants Visas To Chechen Gays

The Associated Press reports: Germany has begun granting gays from Chechnya special visas on humanitarian grounds following reports that gay people are being tortured and killed in the Russian republic. The Foreign Ministry told The Associated Press on Thursday the first man arrived in Germany on Tuesday and four other applications for humanitarian visas are being reviewed. Gay activists and …

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BRUSSELS: Stone-Faced NATO Leaders Look On As Trump Attacks Them Over Defense Spending [VIDEO]

CNN reports: President Donald Trump, speaking in front of the heads of state of fellow NATO allies at the alliance’s new headquarters, called out member countries Thursday for not meeting their financial commitments. “Twenty-three of the 28 member nations are still not paying what they should be paying and what they are supposed to be paying for their defense,” Trump …

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RUSSIA: German Chancellor Angela Merkel Publicly Pressures Putin To Stop Chechen Abuses Of Gay Men

The Independent reports: Angela Merkel has publicly raised concern over the reported prosecution of gay men in Chechnya with Vladimir Putin, following wide-ranging talks. The German Chancellor raised the alleged capture and torture of more than 100 people at a joint press conference with the Russian President in Sochi. The Kremlin has backed the Chechen government’s denials over the brutal …

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GERMANY: Ivanka Gets Booed At Women’s Summit After Claiming Her Father Empowers Women [VIDEO]

Politico reports: Ivanka Trump, who was deeply involved with her father’s campaign and has been instrumental in his administration in the first three months in office, positioned herself as someone who is still in humbling listening tour mode. “I’m striving to think about how best to empower women in the economy,” she said, at one point calling herself a feminist. …

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Obama To Meet With Angela Merkel In Berlin

Politico reports: Former President Barack Obama plans to reemerge on the international stage in late May, sitting down with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in her home country for a panel discussion about democracy. The panel, part of a 500–year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, is titled “Being Involved in Democracy: Taking on Responsibility Locally and Globally.” The visit will coincide …

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GERMANY: 75% Back Same-Sex Marriage In New Poll

The Gay Times reports: A huge majority of Germans support same-sex marriage, a new poll has revealed. The poll, conducted for German Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag, revealed that 75% of Germans favour full legal equality for gay people in life partnerships. Only 20% of those surveyed opposed same-sex marriage, while 5% had no opinion on the matter. This is …

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White House Denies Claim That Trump Handed Angela Merkel A Fake $374B Invoice For NATO Defense

Business Insider reports: The White House denied reports on Sunday that President Trump gave German Chancellor Angela Merkel a $374 billion invoice for money her country owed the US for NATO defense. The Times of London published a story citing anonymous German officials who claimed Trump gave Merkel the bill during their meeting in Washington last week. “No, this is …

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LIVE VIDEO: Trump Holds Presser With Angela Merkel

ABC News reports: How do you say “awkward” in German? President Donald Trump is set to appear at a joint news conference today with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after he spent months during the 2016 election campaign bad-mouthing her approach to the refugee crisis in Europe. Trump’s tough comments during the campaign about Merkel and what he called the “disaster” …

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GERMANY: Renewed Push For Same-Sex Marriage

Pink News reports: The junior party in the ruling coalition in Germany has announced a new bid for same-sex marriage. The Social Democrats (SPD), the junior party in coalition with Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats announced the new bid on Sunday. Accoring to Thomas Oppermann, the parliamentary leader for the SDP, the Green Party will also push for the move. Oppermann …

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TIME’s Person Of The Year: Angela Merkel

TIME Magazine this morning named German Chancellor Angela Merkel as the 2015 Person Of The Year. They write: The year 2015 marked the start of Merkel’s 10th year as Chancellor of a united Germany and the de facto leader of the European Union, the most prosperous joint venture on the planet. By year’s end, she had steered the enterprise through …

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GERMANY: Parliament Votes To Support ISIS Fight

The vote was overwhelmingly in favor of supporting the fight against ISIS. TIME reports: Members of Germany’s Parliament approved Chancellor Angela Merkel’s plan to send forces to Syria in support of the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on Friday. Germany will deploy 1,200 troops as part of the one-year mission, which is projected to …

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REPORT: German Soccer Stadium Evacuated After Explosives-Filled Ambulance Found Outside
UPDATE: Report Judged False Regarding Ambulance

UPDATE: The earlier report has been determined to be partially false and the New York Daily News has amended their initial report excerpted below. The New York Daily News reports: Police found an ambulance filled with explosives outside a canceled soccer match in Hanover, Germany, immediately invoking fears of another terror attack like last week’s massacre in Paris, according to …

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GERMANY: Bundesrat Approves Same-Sex Marriage Bill

Germany’s Bundesrat today approved a same-sex marriage bill. The Bundesrat is comprised of representatives from Germany’s 16 states. The German federal council (Bundesrat) on Friday approved a bill recognising same-sex marriage by a majority of votes from representatives of the country’s major political parties. The bill, which includes reforms to German civil law, was submitted by the governments of four …

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GERMANY: Chancellor Angela Merkel Spokesman Says Same-Sex Marriage Is “Not A Goal Of This Government”

Via Reuters: Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition agreed on Wednesday to make small changes to same-sex civil partnership rules but staunch opposition from conservatives in her party means Germany will not follow Ireland in allowing gay marriages any time soon. Although there are growing divisions within the party, Merkel’s Christian Democrats are still overwhelmingly opposed to same-sex marriages partly due to …

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Unfortunate Photo Of The Day

Israel’s Haaretz has the story: German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a joint press conference on Tuesday in which they addressed weighty topics such as Israeli-Palestinian peace, the Iranian nuclear program and bilateral ties. Shortly afterward, their meeting was nearly eclipsed by a photograph of the two leaders attributed to Jerusalem Post photographer Marc Israel Sellem. …

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GERMANY: Angela Merkel Reelected

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has been reelected to a third term. Her conservative bloc took about 41.5% of the vote – but her liberal partners failed to make it into parliament. It is thought she is likely to seek a grand coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD) who won 26%. The results showed that the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) won …

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GERMANY: High Court Rules That Gay Couples Deserve Equal Tax Benefits

In what is being characterized as a setback to the administration of Chancellor Angela Merkel, Germany’s highest court has ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same tax benefits granted to married straight couples. The verdict requires a change in the law and is a red rag to some in Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and its traditionally Catholic Bavarian …

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GERMANY: Chancellor Angela Merkel Tells Pro Soccer Players To Come Out

German Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday declared that professional soccer players should not fear coming out. Merkel’s statement comes as the nation buzzes about the identity of a player who was quoted anonymously this week as saying that he would come out, but he fears for his safety. Gay Star News has Merkel’s quote: “I am of the opinion that anyone …

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Bush 41 To Get Medal Of Freedom

Former President George H.W. Bush will be among 14 recipients of the Medal Of Freedom, the highest civilian honor granted by the United States. President Obama will present the Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, to former president George H. W. Bush and 14 others with careers in politics, the arts, business and sports. In a statement, Mr. …

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