The leaders of the five states of former East Germany said on Monday that they opposed continued sanctions against Russia over its illegal annexation of the Crimea.
France and Germany on Monday urged Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian opposite number to ensure that a new ceasefire in eastern Ukraine is enforced, warning there has been little let-up in the violence.
German industrial conglomerate Siemens said Friday it would scale back its operations in Russia after confirming gas turbines it sold to companies there had been diverted to Ukraine's Russian-annexed Crimea region in breach of sanctions.
Critics have been questioning the German Foreign Minister's recent series of comments about working closer with Russia, with some labelling the diplomat a "Russia-sympathizer".
Lithuania on Monday signed its biggest ever arms deal for German-made armoured vehicles, as it seeks to allay concerns of a military resurgence of Russia on its doorstep.
Russian TV news has begun questioning Berlin officials' stories about a young woman who was pushed under a U-Bahn train last week, adding to a media broadside that has Russian-German citizens in uproar against the government.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he didn't mean to scare Angela Merkel with his dog Koni at one of their first-ever meetings, a move that has left its mark on relations with the Chancellor ever since.
Germany pushed its NATO allies Wednesday to re-open high-level channels of communication with Russia, arguing that Moscow has a constructive role to play in many areas, especially in ending the Syrian
conflict.
As competition heats up in the selection process for the “Youth Word of the Year”, a massive lead has opened up for 'merkeln' – a new coinage meaning 'to do nothing' or 'to decide nothing' that plays on Chancellor Angela Merkel's political style.
Germany's foreign minister warned on Wednesday that Russia risked spurring a "spiral of escalation" with the West after President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was boosting its nuclear arsenal.
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier expressed "great concern" on Thursday over "serious violations" of a February truce after a flare-up of violence in Ukraine, warning against the return of a "military escalation".
Germany received one of the highest numbers of Ukrainian asylum seekers in Europe last year, according to data released last week by Eurostat and analyzed by The Local.
More than 25 years after the Berlin Wall's fall, Russian lawmakers are mulling a proposal to condemn West Germany's 1990 "annexation" of East Germany as Moscow's answer to Western denunciation of its seizure of Crimea.
Foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Wednesday warned there are signs that pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine are readying for major military clashes with troops of the Western-leaning government.
German exports to Russia have collapsed by more than a quarter, according to figures released on Wednesday, as sanctions brought about by the Ukraine crisis take effect.
A new poll shows that while most Germans fear military escalation between Russia and the Ukraine, only half want to see Nato intervene ahead of the alliance's summit starting on Thursday in Wales.
A solution must be found to the Ukraine crisis that does not hurt Russia and which the Ukrainian people must choose for themselves, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Sunday.
Almost two thirds of Germans fear Russia plans further land grabs in Ukraine, according to an opinion poll released on the eve of Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to the conflict-torn country.
Germany warned of war in Europe on Monday, with vice chancellor Sigmar Gabriel stating the continent was being "dragged" into a "smouldering conflict" with Russia over Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin’s move on Crimea has proven to be a moment of truth for German foreign policy, putting its pledge to play a more active role in international affairs to the test, argues Josef Janning from the European Council on Foreign Relations.
As the EU rolls out sanctions against Russia for its military annexation of Crimea, there are fears damaged relations with Moscow and a weakened Rouble could take a toll on Germany's economy.
President Vladimir Putin and Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced their support for an OSCE observer mission to Ukraine, in a telephone conversation on Sunday, the Kremlin said.
