Germany sticks to Russia sanctions after Trump diesel deal
Deutsche Welle · LC · trust 53/100
After Washington announced a sanctions pause on Russian diesel, Germany has said it remains committed to pressuring Moscow and supporting Ukraine. More on DW.
https://p.dw.com/p/5O6pX The US has said it will allow supply of Russian diesel on global markets Image: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP Advertisement Skip next section What you need to know What you need to know The German government has said it will continue working with EU partners on Russia sanctions Ex-Chancellor Schröder faces criticism for attending Putin's birthday 'Ragebait' voted Germany's youth word of the year Read below for a roundup of top stories from and about Germany on Saturday, October 10
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10/10/2026 October 10, 2026 Germany rejects proposed EU budget, calls for greater cuts Zac Crellin Germany swiftly rejected a proposed new budget for the European Union that was put forward on Saturday.
Ireland, which holds the rotating EU presidency, put forward a budget of €1.826 trillion ($2.046 trillion) for the next seven years — a reduction of around €159 billion compared to the European Commission's original proposal of nearly €1.985 trillion.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the budget cuts should go further .
"The size of the new proposal is no basis for an agreement," Merz said.
"The EU budget must be affordable for those who bear the main burden of financing," he added.
Germany is the largest net contributor to the EU budget. It and other net contributors including the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Austria and Finland all want the next budget to be slashed by hundreds of billions of euros.
But the second-largest net contributor to the EU budget, France, has instead argued that the 27-member bloc needs a more generous budget in order to overcome new challenges.
10/10/2026 October 10, 2026 'Ragebait' named Germany's 2026 Youth Word of the Year The Langenscheidt publishing house on Saturday named "ragebait" as Germany's 2026 Youth Word of the Year during the Frankfurt Book Fair.
Ragebait is social media content designed to draw people in by making them angry with provocative claims, lies, or outrageous opinions, thereby driving up clicks and interactions.
Langenscheidt, Germany's best-selling dictionary publisher, organized an online poll with 1 million young people taking part in this year's competition.
Ragebait took 36.5% of the vote, with runners-up including the terms "peak," meaning the best of the best, and "crashout," meaning when someone loses their cool.
10/10/2026 October 10, 2026 Germany 'committed' to further Russia sanctions Germany has not purchased Russian oil since 2023 [FILE May 2024] Image: Alexander Ryumin/TASS/dpa/picture alliance Germany on Saturday said it would continue pursuing sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, coming a day after US President Donald Trump announced a temporary US sanctions reprieve on Russian diesel.
"The federal government has taken note of the US decision relating to Russian diesel deliveries," government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius said in a statement.
"The federal government remains committed to the decisions on sanctions against Russia and is working with its European partners on further sanctions," the statement added.
Germany's "support for Ukraine in its struggle to defend itself remains unfailing ... Diplomatic efforts for a peaceful solution continue," he added.
After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has been subject to round after round of sanctions packages led by the US and EU.
Russian crude and other oil products have been subject to EU sanctions since 2023, and Germany has not imported any oil or oil products from Russia since then.
A spokesperson for Economic Affairs Minister Katherina Reiche said Saturday that "Germany stands fully behind the sanctions packages."
" Our supply is diversified in this area; we are independent of Russian oil," the spokesperson said.
Germany remains Ukraine's largest financial backer in Europe. During a visit to Kyiv last weekend, Chancellor Friedrich Merz reiterated Germany's unwavering support for Ukraine.
In what amounts to a major reversal in US policy, Trump on Friday said he would temporarily lift US sanctions to allow Russia to "immediately" supply over 300,000 tons of diesel fuel to US and global markets.
The move comes as diesel prices reach record levels after the war in Iran launched by the US and Israel sent diesel prices skyrocketing around the world. In the US, the high prices are putting political pressure on Trump's Republicans ahead of the midterm elections in November.
However, despite Trump's claims on social media, it remains unclear how much Russian fuel will reach global markets amid domestic fuel shortages as Ukraine continues to target refineries.
Donald Trump blames Ukraine for record US diesel prices To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
10/10/2026 October 10, 2026 Ex-Chancellor Schröder criticized for Putin birthday visit Putin celebrated his 74th birthday in Moscow on Wednesday Image: Pressestelle des Kremls The appearance of Germany's Russia-friendly former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder at President Vladimir Putin's birthday party earlier this week has drawn criticism in Germany.
Franziska Brantner, the co-leader of Germany's Green party, called on Schröder's Social Democrats (SPD) to revisit revoking Schröder's party membership.
"Russia is now even attacking us in Germany with hybrid attacks. Schröder hasn't learned anything from this. A new approach needs to be put on the table," she told the Tagesspiegel newspaper.
"Schröder is celebrating Putin's birthday with him, while civilians in Ukraine are once again dying as a result of Russian attacks. This is politically unacceptable," said Brantner.
Anything less than expulsion from the party would be "a disastrous signal,…
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