German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is set to visit Moldova on Wednesday, pledging European support as the country faces ongoing Russian influence efforts ahead of its parliamentary elections later this year.

Donald Trump has accused the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky of “trying to back out” of the minerals deal proposed by Washington as payback for US military aid. “I see he’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal. And if he does that, he’s got some problems. Big, big problems,” Mr Trump told reporters aboard Air Force Once on Sunday.

The deployment of German troops to eastern Lithuania is a significant break in the country's defence policy, which has prevented the permanent deployment of troops abroad since the end of WWII

German customs have secured and confiscated the Eventin oil tanker that lost power in the Baltic Sea off the north German coast in January, a Finance Ministry spokesman said in Berlin on Tuesday. "With the confiscation,

The confiscation of the Eventin tanker allows the ship and its cargo to be disposed of. This was stated in the Ministry of Finance of the Federal Republic of Germany, according to the telegram channel "DW * main".

The co-head of Germany’s Social Democrats party and frontrunner to become the next finance minister Lars Klingbeil dismissed swirling speculation over reviving pipeline gas deliveries from Russia after a potential peace deal for Ukraine.

The assignment was part of a new program aimed at suspected Russian sabotage. None has occurred since NATO began patrols.

His rhetoric has fueled the urgency behind Germany's military expansion plans. The planned increase in German defense spending could bolster NATO's deterrence capacity, particularly in Eastern Europe, where Russia's aggression has put member nations on edge.

The German authorities replaced the crew of the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Eventin, confiscated by customs in March, and took control of the vessel and cargo. This is reported by Bloomberg with reference to a representative of the German Ministry of Finance of the Federal Republic of Germany.

The nation has already missed a goal of increasing its soldiers by 20,000 to bring the total to around 203,000, with other major European powers struggling to attract willing recruits.