The Finnish EU presidency has defended its deal with German car maker BMW to provide 100 vehicles free of charge to ferry VIPs back and forth from events in Helsinki. BMW got the job after "an EU-wide call for tenders" and BMW executives did "not have opportunities to meet" with politicians, Anja Laisi, a presidency spokeswoman, told the Yle news agency. BMW provided no fuel or drivers, she added.

Thirty years ago a "European unity" picnic became an East German exodus from communism.

England are held to a 1-1 draw by Germany in their second match at the EuroHockey Championships in Antwerp.

Kurdish authorities in Syria have handed over to Germany four children whose parents were fighters of the so-called Islamic State (Isis), DPA reports. The children belonged to the ISIS families that were captured by Western-backed Kurdish forces after the defeat of Isis in Syria. Most European countries are hesitating what to do with the captured fighters and their families, amidst rumours of a comeback of Isis in the region.

Scientists have carried out an analysis of long-term data of an outbreak of classical swine fever in wild boars in the German federal state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern that occurred between 1993 and 2000. The results show that non-infected regions have a higher risk of infection due to changes in movement patterns, particularly during the mast and rutting seasons (autumn and winter).

The German government is working on a plan to contain a possible deep recession, according to Bloomberg. The plan contains fiscal stimuli to bolster the domestic economy and consumer spending in order to avoid a sharp increase in unemployment. On Monday, the German Central Bank warned of a coming recession as economic projections seemed to be much worse than predicted.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson called on France and Germany on Monday to change their position on Brexit and negotiate a new exit deal for Britain, reiterating his stance that he is ready to leave the European Union without a deal if they do not.

According to a recent report from Sport Bild, Bayern Munich will no longer be pursuing deal for Juventus forward Mario Mandzukic. The former Bayern star had been heavily linked with a return to German football over the course of the last few days, but now, it seems as if he’s going to be staying put ...]

According to a recent report from Sport Bild, Timo Werner is set to remain at German club RB Leipzig ahead of a potential deal to champions Bayern Munich. They are not willing to pay £30 million in order to lure him over to the club, with his contract being set to expire in 2020. Bayern ...]