Daily brief
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron pushed for faster EU enlargement at a summit in the Western Balkans, aiming to ease accession for countries in the region. Merz also announced Germany will apply for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2035-2036 term, seeking broad support to avoid a contested vote.
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Germany's far-right AfD party and rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as an AfD delegation attended his economic forum in St. Petersburg.
Putin met with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder in the Kremlin.
A German man was fined a month's income for calling Chancellor Merz 'lying Fritz'.
A court ruled that the BND's files on Adolf Eichmann must remain secret.