The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Berlin

  • Berlin hosts Europe’s defence ministers after Putin hails new missile

    Berlin hosts Europe’s defence ministers after Putin hails new missile

    Defence ministers from Germany, France, Poland, Italy and the UK are set to meet in Berlin on Monday to discuss measures to strengthen security and defence in Europe.

    Russia’s targeting of Ukraine with a new medium-range missile, thought to have implications for all of Europe, is likely to play a major role during discussions.

    Germany’s Boris Pistorius, France’s Sébastien Lecornu, the UK’s John Healey, Poland’s Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and Italy’s Guido Crosetto are also meeting ahead of the looming presidency of NATO critic Donald Trump.

    Trump, set to be inaugurated on January 20, has demanded that Europe invest significantly more money in its own security and is expected to cut military aid to Ukraine.

    Following recent approval from Washington, Ukraine has begun using U.S.-made ATACMS missiles and British Storm Shadow cruise missiles to target military sites in Russia.

    Read Also: Leverkusen one win away from Bundesliga glory after win in Berlin

    Russian President Vladimir Putin then ordered its missile attack on the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, which has a population of over a million, with a new medium-range missile on Thursday morning.

    He hailed the “Oreshnik” (hazel tree) missile as unique and said it would go into mass production.

    Moscow says the rocket flies at hypersonic speed, making it impossible for anti-aircraft systems to intercept it.

    Experts assume that the rocket could technically also be equipped with nuclear warheads.

    (dpa/NAN)

  • Couple fined $8,400 for having sex on Berlin train

    A man and a woman have been fined $8,400 for having sex in the middle of the day on a Berlin train, a court spokesman said on Thursday.

    The incident took place on a Sunday in April, 2018.

    Police at the time said the man and woman were performing oral sex in full view of passengers, including children, on a train heading into the city centre.

    Witnesses reportedly intervened, leading to a physical altercation that eventually prompted one passenger to pull the emergency brake.

    The man and woman were arrested at the scene.

    The 37-year-old woman was fined 3,900 euros and the 39-year-old man 3,600 euros, according to the decision, which was handed down on April 10.

    NAN

  • Germany to lunch project to break taboo surrounding menstruation

    A project designed by a Berlin creative agency `Goalgirls’ to break the stigma surrounding menstruation is set to feature at several festivals in September, the report said on Thursday.

    “The ‘Red Tent,’ designed by Goalgirls, is due to be set up at the Melt Festival in Saxony-Anhalt about two hours outside Berlin at Lollapalooza in the German capital on Sept. 8 to Sept. 9.

    “We are creating a space where all women can come together, you shouldn’t be ashamed of having your period,” Goalgirls’ Katharina “Kaddie” Rothe said on Thursday.

    She said that the tents are expected to house workshops on the monthly cycle, and female visitors will receive free sanitary products, or they can drink a Bloody Mary cocktail, or just hang out.

    The idea of the ‘Red Tent’ is not new; it has already featured at festivals in Britain and the U.S.

    The German organisers said they also want to welcome men into the tents: the idea is education and awareness-raising after all.

    The ‘Red Tent” was already featured at Berlin’s Tech Open Air festival in June.

  • Turkey asks Germany to extradite 81 citizens over failed coup

    Turkey asks Germany to extradite 81 citizens over failed coup

    Turkey has asked the German government to extradite 81 of its citizens for suspected involvement in a failed military coup in 2016, the Justice Ministry said in response to a question from the Left Party.

    The government of President Recep Erdogan has accused Germany of harbouring supporters of Fethullah Gulen, an exiled preacher and former ally of the president whose movement is accused of orchestrating the coup.

    The answer to the Left Party’s question, seen by dpa on Monday, does not reveal how many extradition requests Ankara submitted for people it accuses of terrorism-related activities.

    In November 2016, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Turkey was seeking the extradition of “more than 4,000” supporters of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party ( PKK ).

    “Regardless of the measures the Turkish side uses to exert pressure, the federal government must not extradite,” said Left Party lawmaker Alexander Neu.

    “Instead, it must exert pressure itself in order to finally free German hostages from custody.”

    Turkey is currently holding a handful of German citizens, including journalists and human rights activists, on terrorism-related charges, causing strained diplomatic relations to reach an unprecedented low.

    Turkey’s relationship with Germany was severely strained after it refused to allow Turkish politicians to hold campaign rallies in February.

    Erdogan repeatedly threw Nazi slurs against Angela Merkel and accused the country of Nazi practices.

    Berlin’s decision to grant asylum to some of 414 army officers and government workers only added fuel to Turkey’s escalating animosity toward the country.

    NAN

  • Berlin Attack suspect shot dead in Milan

    Berlin Attack suspect shot dead in Milan

    24-year-old Tunisian Anis Amri, believed to be the suspect in the Berlin Christmas market truck attack has been killed in a shoot-out in a suburb of the northern Italian city of Milan on Friday, a security source told Reuters.

    Italy’s interior minister who just held a news conference confirmed his death.

    Details later.

  • World War II bomb defused in Berlin

    A World War II bomb found in Berlin on Wednesday was successfully defused, local media reported.

    The find had disrupted local and national rail service in the German capital around midday as the authorities had to cordon off the site within a 200-metre radius and evacuate local residents.

    The bomb, which has an estimated weight of 100 kilogrammes, was found during street works in the city’s eastern Friedrichshain district early Wednesday, the police said.

    The location of the bomb was between Warschauer Strasse and Ostkreuz stations in an area popular with tourists.

  • Lessons from fall of Berlin Wall

    SIR: Citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany the other day celebrated the 25th year anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall which occurred on November 9, 1989. The great feat brought together East and West German people.

    That historic unification might not have been possible without the conscientious idealistic efforts of so many people, some of whom include John F Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev and many people on both sides of the German divide. I watched a CNN correspondent, Jonathan Mann on television during the celebration of that day in 1989 as a young reporter where he gave a report from Germany on the jubilant moment.

    25 years later, Jonathan is still with the CNN but now a well groomed and oriented journalist. I wish same can relate to Nigerian politicians who should be

    well groomed to serve beyond self while in office. I wish political parties can present dependable people for elections with experience to manage the plethora of problems bedevilling the polity.

    People who do not engage in acts akin to sock puppetry and who understand the role of the opposition in a democracy should henceforth come forward. Nigerians would love to see politicians with great promises go into government only after genuinely soliciting for votes from the electorate. People with real demonstrable political skill and sound leadership ability for controlling crisis are needed to wriggle the country out of her present leadership impasse. The nation

    needs political figures who truly understand that elective office is all about solving problems; who appreciate the importance of concessional politics for peace, especially in a fickle country like ours.

    Like the Germans, we need genuine statesmen  to teach our children the importance of service beyond self which must form the bedrock of our educational curriculum to enable a child grow with the concept of seeing life beyond a narrow indoctrinated perspective. Like the Germans, we need leaders that appreciate the power of reason to stop the insurgency ravaging our country and rebuild Nigeria, for, “where excessive emotion takes root, reason takes flight.” Like the Germans, we need leaders with the will to do and solve problems which is the essence of politics and not leaders interested only in making history by the number of years they serve(d) in office.

    • Simon Abah

    Port Harcourt

    Rivers State

  • Ebeano in Berlin

    Ebeano in Berlin

    For three-and-a-half years, Valentine Nnamani was jobless. He lost his job (bricklaying and concrete technician) at a construction firm, Bilfielder Berger, Berlin, Germany – a parent company of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc.

    This condition forced him to take to cooking, first as a non-profit outfit under cover for two years. The patronage he got during that period gave him the confidence to invest in cooking. However, Nnamani was scared of the uncertainty and whether he could make it through cooking in foreign land.

    Today, Nnamani’s Afro Intercontinental Restaurant (Ebeano) has become one of the first choice African restaurants in Tiergarten Mitte, Berlin, Germany. From an initial 20 customers per day the restaurant now boasts of over 70 clients per day plus indoor and home delivery services.

    “For me, cooking is a hobby. When I cooked for 70 pupils of a school in 2005, there I discovered my talent in cooking. And I chose to open a restaurant when some of my friends visited my house and they confessed that they enjoyed the meal I served them. At a point, I asked myself why I got into the business, but for the push by my friends. This was in 2008,” he recalled.

    Nnamani, who is a traditional chief from Neke Community in Enugu State later braced up to register the restaurant, which got German government approval. “For the past four years, Germans now know Nigeria has a rich food culture. In fact, the appreciation and patronage since then have been enormous. Apart from Nigerians or Africans, the Germans are getting interested in the menu,” he said.

    His hard work got rewarded in 2013 when the restaurant was awarded a gold medal and certificate-Gastrol gold for integration kitchen. According to him, this has lifted the restaurant business with a client base of 50 per cent Africans and 50 per cent Europeans. Looking back, cooking has been a blessing for him.

    Nnamani who was a clearing agent in Apapa, Lagos for seven years before travelling to Germany, said he left Nigeria because the late General Sanni Abacha’s administration was very unfriendly. Apart from cuisines, Nnamani also promote music and movie of Nigerian and other African countries. In order to reach out to larger audience in Berlin, Nnamani is planning to expand his outlets while retaining the old spot.  According to him, the success of his business to a large extent, is the function of support from African countries’ embassies in Berlin that patronise Afro International Restaurant.

  • Berlin to stage 2015 Champions league final

    Berlin to stage 2015 Champions league final

    Berlin’s Olympiastadion has been announced by Uefa as the host of the 2015 Champions League final.

    It will be the first time the German capital stadium, which was built to host the 1936 Olympic Games will be hosting the final. The stadium has never staged the final of Europe’s top competition.

    The National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland will host the 2015 Europa League final.The arena hosted five matches in last summer’s European Championship.

  • ‘Sustainability, basis of ITB Berlin success’

    Nigeria will be part of this year’s ITB Berlin tourism fair where social and ecological responsibility in tourism is a key subject. Numerous events will be used to address various aspects of sustainability and socially responsible travel.

    The programme in the Adventure and Responsible Tourism includes discussions and papers dealing with human rights, travel for the deaf and developments on the Caribbean island of Haiti three years after the disastrous earthquake. This year’s environmental protection and social responsibility have also been taken into consideration in the production of the ITB Berlin catalogue and ITB Quickfinder which have been printed using a climate-neutral process with the aim of supporting a geothermal project in this year’s partner country, Indonesia.

    Dr. Martin Buck, Director, Competence Centre Travel and Logistics, Messe, Berlin, said: “For many years, ITB Berlin has recognized the importance of corporate social responsibility. As a result of a growing awareness among travellers, the next few years will see increased demand in this sector. This is a development that we, as the world’s largest travel trade show, reflect and actively promote through our events by featuring various aspects of the subject on our agenda.”

    The compensation derived from the climate-neutral printing of the ITB Berlin catalogues is being used by ITB Berlin in some innovative ways this year which include the support that it is providing for a geothermal project on the Indonesian island of Java. By supporting this climate protection project valuable jobs are created there, local people are being trained in new technologies, the availability of electrical power is being improved and support is also being provided for a school for the benefit of girls in particular. On Friday, 8 March, this year’s partner country is presenting some other ecological and sustainable projects on the small stage in Hall 4.1.b. In addition the ITB Berlin Convention is offering some fascinating insights into the innovative “STREAM project”.

    A number of parks from different parts of the world will be presenting their own eco-friendly concepts. Another of the topics will be the protection of animals living in the wild. This year’s Convention and Culture Partner of ITB Berlin, Azerbaijan will be providing details about its own sustainable tourism concept.