The US Army is to further bolster the number of troops it has stationed in Europe by a further 1,500, despite repeated complaints by President Trump that NATO allies are not spending enough to defend the continent. US Army Europe said the troops will be deployed to Germany by September 2020, calling it a “display of our continued commitment to NATO and our collective resolve to support European [...]

A new party calling for Ireland to leave the EU launches in Dublin today with a conference discussing the possible benefits of ‘Irexit.’ The Irexit Freedom Party is pushing its agenda despite an apparent lack of public support. The Irexit movement was born out of a public meeting held in Dublin last February by former UKIP leader Nigel Farage, which was attended by 600 people. [...]

The latest trend among European countries of bringing home their gold reserves has been raising concerns in Brussels. RT talked to Claudio Grass of Precious Metal Advisory Switzerland to understand what’s behind that trend. According to Grass, the process means disintegration, which usually comes with instability, unrest, more government intervention and control. [...]

The Iran nuclear deal, which was recently ditched by the US, humanitarian efforts in war-ravaged Syria, and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project… Putin and Merkel hold three-hour talks and are mostly on the same page. The surprise visit announced earlier this week between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin took place in Meseberg Palace, 65km north of Berlin, on Sa [...]

The Swiss resort of Chateaux-d’Oex is known for its hot air balloons. The Swiss resort of Davos is known for hot air. Or at least for one week a year, when some of the world’s biggest windbags meet to discuss ‘significant’ issues. [...]

BERLIN (Sputnik) – The German business community has urged the German government to strengthen its cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) as a means to respond to the threat of protectionism stemming from the United States, head of the German Eastern Business Association said. [...]

Russian President Vladimir Putin is planning to attend the wedding of Austrian Foreign Minister Karin Kneissl during his visit to the country on August 18, the Kremlin has confirmed. “Yes, he’s going to make a stop there on his way to Berlin,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists when asked if Putin would attend the wedding. [...]

Italy’s ruling Northern League party predicts the dismantling of the euro unless the European Central Bank (ECB) offers a guarantee to reduce yield spreads in the eurozone. "The situation can’t be resolved and it is going to explode,” the economics spokesman of Italy’s ruling Northern League party, Claudio Borghi, told Reuters. [...]

The flow of migrants coming to Europe from Africa is likely to grow in the coming years, writes Sputnik Germany contributor Bernhard Schwarz. For decades Libya served as a firewall halting the tide of refugees heading to the EU. Now when Libya lies in ruins European leaders see that late Colonel Muammar Gaddafi was right, Schwarz stressed. [...]

Germany's Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) does not have specific data on possible attempts by Russia to affect the 2017 Bundestag elections, according to a report. "After Russia took measures to intervene in the presidential elections in the US and France, as well as launching numerous cyber attacks against the German Bundestag, politicians, parties and political [...]

A Czech politician has referred to Syria as an example of how dangerous it can be to ignore the rules laid down by the international community for the sake of defending "values" that are unable be clearly defined. Former Czech Foreign Minister Karl Schwarzenberg has slammed the current approach in modern world politics in an interview with the newspaper Basler Zeitung, suggesting that the pre- [...]

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Hungarian government is unlikely to reverse its tough stance on migration and asylum policies, despite pressure from the European Union, though it may resort to minor concessions, Tibor Bana, the deputy chairman of Hungary’s parliamentary committee on European affairs, told Sputnik. [...]

BERLIN (Sputnik) – Germany recorded an unprecedented increase in the number of extremists from the right, left and Islamist camps in 2017, German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said. "Today, there are 774 potentially dangerous Islamists [in Germany], more than ever before," Seehofer told reporters, adding that it was necessary to boost the work in order to extradite these persons to thei [...]

Industrial representatives say the tariffs would harm the US itself. Germany's Federation of Industries (BDI) has warned that tariffs imposed by Washington on the EU risk harming the US itself. On June 1, the US imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from the EU, and now the White House is currently threatening to extend the tariffs to cars and car parts as well. Jean-Claude Ju [...]

Deutsche Bank’s problems in the US continue as this time around, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has found the bank’s subsidiaries were likely involved in questionable trading schemes over a period of at least five years. Kristian Rouz — The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has moved to slap a hefty fine on Deutsche Bank as a settlement payment in a probe into  [...]

The majority of Germans support Nord Stream 2, a poll revealed Monday. It also showed that most dismissed Donald Trump’s negative comments on the pipeline as a tactic to promote US liquefied gas in Europe. Two thirds of respondents support the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline because it would help provide Germany with a more reliable supply of natural gas, according to the the Forsa poll, which [...]

Switzerland’s financial regulator has accused Rothschild Bank AG and its trust subsidiary of violating anti-money laundering law in relation to 1MDB, the troubled Malaysian sovereign wealth fund. According to the regulator, both Rothschild Bank AG and Rothschild Trust AG failed to check where assets from a client came from. [...]

The number of unsuccessful deportations from Germany has increased by more than 200 percent, as every second deportable migrant stayed in the country by not appearing for their expulsion appointment. An internal evaluation by the federal police found that, as of the end of May, only 11,100 scheduled deportations had been successful out of a planned 23,900, according to the report by Deutsche Wirt [...]

The US-led coalition’s military intervention in Syria is under increasing levels of scrutiny, with critics arguing that the coalition has no mandate to conduct military operations in the Arab Republic as it doesn’t have Damascus’ approval to do so. [...]

Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic cemented her status as a World Cup superstar by receiving 25 percent more attention than any Croatia player despite record online interest in the country at the final. The tiny Balkan nation’s unlikely march to the final saw general online interest in Croatia soar, beginning after their dramatic quarter-final penalty shootout win over hosts Russia in S [...]

NATO has nothing to do with European defense, it is just a tool of intimidation and a money-making machine for the US' bloated and corrupt military-industrial complex, geopolitical analyst Jon Hellevig told Sputnik, arguing that the latest summit has not indicated any real rift among NATO members – they just don't want to fork out. [...]

Investor confidence in Europe has surged in 2017 after three years of decline. Europe has attracted a record level of foreign direct investment (FDI), with Russia making the top five list, according to data from EY. The firm’s report showed that, despite a slowing growth in Europe, investor sentiment is more buoyant with 50 percent of more than 500 investors highlighting confidence. [...]