Germany has stopped selling arms to Russia due to the current “political situation”, according to reports on Thursday. The sale of military equipment to Russia by German firms has been criticized by the country’s Nato allies.
Germany arms sales to Russia have come under fire following the crisis in Ukraine. In 2012 Germany sold €40 million worth of rifles, pistols and armoured vehicles to the country.
Germany's weapons industry is booming, and even the vice chancellor's attempt to stop selling tanks to the Saudis is a minor concession for the world's third biggest arms exporter. But the trade is destabilizing security.
A Bavarian company has created the world's first James-Bond style “smart gun” which can only be fired by the owner. Supporters say it is safer than a regular pistol, while others claim it is too complicated.
German arms experts unveiled one of the biggest private weapons hauls ever found on Monday. Examining the 200 firearms, which were found in a pensioners home and included grenades, a bazooka and machine gun, took hours.
German arms exports to Gulf states are set to hit a new record in 2013, it was reported on Wednesday. In the first six months alone, the country sent over €800 million worth of combat weapons to the troubled region.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told a German newspaper on Monday that European powers would "pay the price" if they sent weapons to rebel forces seeking to topple him.
Germany's foreign minister is no longer ruling out that the country could supply weapons to the Syrian opposition, he told a daily newspaper on Friday. The move could free the way for lifting the EU embargo.
Germany is the world's third largest arms exporter behind the US and Russia, a five-yearly report revealed on Monday. Between 2008 and 2012, Germany was responsible for seven percent of global arms exports.
German weapons exports to Persian Gulf states more than doubled between 2011 and 2012, with Saudi Arabia by far the biggest buyer, according to information dug up by a left-wing MP published in Friday's <i>SĂĽddeutsche Zeitung</i> newspaper.
Saudi Arabia is planning to buy German patrol boats for a total of around €1.5 billion euros despite opposition in Germany, a newspaper reported on Sunday.
European aerospace giants EADS and BAE have less than a month from Thursday to clear big hurdles to a projected $45 billion merger and create a united front against US arch-rival Boeing.
Qatar is in talks to buy up to 200 German tanks at a cost of around €2 billion – and Chancellor Angela Merkel is in favour, according to a report due to be published in Monday's <i>Der Spiegel</i> magazine.
German weapons manufacturers should have an easier time selling their products as the government intends to relax export regulations, <i>Der Spiegel</i> magazine reported on Sunday. The Economy Ministry denied the report.
Chancellor Angela Merkel did not rule out selling tanks to the Indonesian government, while on a trip there talking with top politicians there about close political and economic cooperation.
Germany's centre-right coalition on Tuesday came under increasing fire from both the opposition and Angela Merkel's own conservatives for a controversial arms deal to supply 200 Leopard tanks to Saudi Arabia despite its questionable human rights record.
