With well more than 125,000 refugees arriving across its borders since Russia invaded Ukraine, Germany is faced — for the second time in a decade — with having to provide shelter to large numbers of people fleeing turmoil.
While the influx of refugees from Syria and other countries in 2015 created a major shift in Germany’s internal demographics, events surrounding the latest surge in arrivals appear to be changing how the country projects power externally.
The bold decision by Chancellor Olaf Scholz — a man who until recently was sometimes branded as “boring” — to massively increase defence spending represents what some see as a seismic change in Germany’s post-Cold War foreign policy.
For the first time, at least since reunification, a German government, from the top, [has placed] a high importance on armed forces which are good quality and deployable
Prof Carlo Masala,
Bundeswehr University Munich
By also deciding to send Ukraine anti-tank and anti-aircraft systems, Mr Scholz cast off the country’s official reticence to send arms to war zones.
“It’s a paradigm shift. For the first time, at least since reunification, a German government, from the top, [has placed] a high importance on armed forces which are good quality and deployable,” said Prof Carlo Masala, professor of international politics at the Bundeswehr University in Munich.
Although Germany has officially been cautious to send arms to conflict zones — before the Russian invasion it declined Ukraine’s pleas for armaments — it is “a very substantial arms exporter”, said Prof Benjamin Ziemann, professor of modern German history at the University of Sheffield in the UK.
“They do not want to ship weapons to conflict zones, but there have been ways of navigating around this,” Prof Ziemann said.
Last year alone Germany sent billions of dollars' worth of weapons to Egypt, for example, even though the country has current military engagements, such as in Yemen and Libya.
Limited opposition
With anger widespread over what is regarded in Germany as Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression towards Ukraine, Mr Scholz’s move to increase defence spending — and, as a result, the German arms industry — has faced limited political or public opposition.
“The scale is obviously huge and there’s no reservations about this,” Prof Ziemann said.
“At this point, there’s only marginal fringe groups who still think Russia could say that western policy over the past 15 to 20 years, particularly Ukraine policy, has been aggressive.”
Polling indicates that more than two thirds of Germans approve of the increase in spending, and support was not difficult to find on the streets of Berlin.
The German capital has hosted major demonstrations against the war, Ukrainian flags hang from many windows, numerous buildings are lit up at night in blue and yellow, and the phrase “We stand with Ukraine” — in English — is often seen in shop windows or on noticeboards.
Amid an outpouring of sympathy for Ukraine, many Germans view this as the time to turn the page on their own country’s reluctance to be regarded as a military power, an approach that resulted from its 20th-century history and the horrors of the Nazi regime.
“It was many years ago; now the time’s changed. We should look forward to the future,” said Christine Wagner, 39, who runs a website in the German capital.
“It’s OK to spend a lot of money on defence. We’re going more to stand for ourselves and not live too much in our history.”
Underfunded
Bernhard Vestel, 65, a retired architect in Berlin, said the German armed forces are in need of an upgrade.
“A lot of the weapons systems and things soldiers need are not in a great situation,” he said.
Analysts have described the German armed forces, or Bundeswehr, as underfunded for decades and lacking cutting-edge equipment. Budget increases since Russia’s attacks on Ukraine in 2014 are not felt to have plugged the gaps.
Now, with Mr Scholz announcing a €100 billion (Dh110.3bn) modernisation fund and committing to spending two per cent of gross domestic product on defence, in line with the Nato target, this is set to change. With such large sums available, a concern now is ensuring that funds are not wasted.
Even though the Bundeswehr’s coffers will to be full to bursting, neither the German public nor experts expect the country to throw caution to the wind when it comes to overseas military engagements.
Germany’s biggest overseas military deployment is in Mali, where it has about 1,000 soldiers operating as part of a UN peacekeeping mission, Minusma. Another 300 are involved in an EU training mission.
The deployment began in 2013 and there have been questions over whether it will be extended by the German parliament when the mandate expires at the end of May.
Désirée, 35, a government employee in Berlin who declined to give her full name, said Germany would continue to act only within the remits of multilateral institutions.
“We’re members of Nato and the EU, so we’re not going to go alone,” she said.
“That’s part of why we’re doing this, because we’re part of alliances. We’re not going to have go-it-alone operations. We’re not the US.”
Likewise, Prof Masala said the increase in defence spending was not about Germany becoming militaristic, but about shouldering “the responsibility as the EU’s biggest continental power”.
“It’s [about having] armed forces that fit our international standing,” he said.
“The German armed forces are deployed by the German Bundestag (parliament). There will be reluctance to send them on missions that aren’t in Germany’s interest. Germany is focused on territorial defence.
“There used to be always quite a nice contradiction in German public opinion on the Bundeswehr. It’s highly regarded in every poll. People want a fully equipped Bundeswehr [but] they’re extremely reluctant to deploy them.”
Germany is, he said, “not going to become more trigger happy”.
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
In The Heights
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Stars: Anthony Ramos, Lin-Manual Miranda
Rating: ****
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
RESULTS
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner AF Nashrah, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)
5.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner Mutaqadim, Riccardo Iacopini, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
6pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Hameem, Jose Santiago, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
6.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner AF Almomayaz, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
7pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Dalil Al Carrere, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash.
7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Lahmoom, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner Jayide Al Boraq, Bernardo Pinheiro, Khalifa Al Neyadi.
TICKETS
For tickets for the two-day Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) event, entitled Dubai Invasion 2019, on September 27 and 28 go to www.meraticket.com.
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Results
Final: Iran beat Spain 6-3.
Play-off 3rd: UAE beat Russia 2-1 (in extra time).
Play-off 5th: Japan beat Egypt 7-2.
Play-off 7th: Italy beat Mexico 3-2.
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
