German leader Angela Merkel says the stability of the eurozone is ‘assured’, as Athens sees violent protests over spending cuts. more …

Angela Merkel on Wednesday insisted that the country’s continued spending despite record debt prevented it from “falling into the abyss.”

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In response to our list of the people who mattered most in the noughties, have your say on who defined the decade
Finding just 10 people who define the tumult of the past decade wasn’t exactly an easy task. Our original list featured hundreds of names, and moved from the glamorous (Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, Kate [...]

Angela Merkel and Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg are coming under increasing pressure to explain the circumstances leading up to the German-ordered attack in Afghanistan in September that killed 142 people.

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France has acted, Germany is interested – and the signal from London could change attitudes in the US
The banks’ defence of Fortress Bonus is starting to crumble. Their claim that unilateral action against excessive rewards by the UK would damage the City has been a key plank of their case against bonus reform, but that [...]

• Levy on City trading aimed at restoring trust in banks• Survey shows more than 50% of voters back plan
Gordon Brown will take his radical proposal to tax City trading to Britain’s business leaders today, as a survey shows that more than half of voters would back the plan, if the proceeds went to help [...]

• Footballer had spent years trying to hide illness• Country in shock as star player dies under train
On the surface, Robert Enke’s career appeared to be going from strength to strength. Widely seen as Germany’s number one goalkeeper, the 32-year-old was at the peak of his professional powers. But beneath the surface, he was a [...]

• Opel workers walk out in protest but relief at Vauxhall • Carmaker scraps agreement with Magna and Sberbank
The row over General Motors’ decision to scrap a European sales deal supported by Russia and Germany escalated today, with Vladimir Putin accusing the car group of “scornful” behaviour.
The Russian prime minister said his country had learned [...]

• GM pulled out of a deal protecting German jobs• Restructuring still likely due to 30% overcapacity
General Motors turned the screw on workers at Vauxhall and Opel tonight by giving a clear warning that its decision to keep the European business could still result in 10,000 job cuts.
Earlier trades unions in Britain had expressed [...]

• Senate delay means no bill likely before Copenhagen• German leader makes historic Congress address

International negotiators lost one of the key elements to a successful deal on global warming today after Democratic leaders in the US Congress ruled out passing a climate change law before 2010. In the latest obstacle on the road to the [...]