Latest news with #MichaelKretschmer
TimesLIVE
3 days ago
- Automotive
- TimesLIVE
German Grand Prix to stay on MotoGP calendar until 2031
The German Grand Prix will remain on the MotoGP calendar until 2031 after a new five-year contract was signed to continue holding races at the iconic Sachsenring, rights holder Dorna Sports said on Tuesday. The new deal will see MotoGP celebrate the Sachsenring's 100th anniversary in 2027 as motorcycle racing's premier class capitalises on the growing interest in the sport, which had more than 250,000 fans attend the Grand Prix at the weekend. 'Saxony is motor racing country. The new record attendance at the weekend showed again how much we love motor racing in Saxony,' Michael Kretschmer, prime minister of Saxony, said. Ducati's Marc Marquez won the German Grand Prix on Sunday to extend his world championship lead to 83 points, proving again why he is known as the 'King of Sachsenring' after claiming his ninth MotoGP victory at the circuit.
New Straits Times
3 days ago
- Automotive
- New Straits Times
German Grand Prix to stay on MotoGP calendar until 2031
THE German Grand Prix will remain on the MotoGP calendar until 2031 after a new five-year contract was signed to continue holding races at the iconic Sachsenring, rights holder Dorna Sports said on Tuesday. The new deal will see MotoGP celebrate the Sachsenring's 100th anniversary in 2027 as motorcycle racing's premier class capitalises on the growing interest in the sport, which had over 250,000 fans attend the Grand Prix over the weekend. "Saxony is motor racing country... The new record attendance at the weekend showed once again how much we love motor racing in Saxony," Michael Kretschmer, Prime Minister of Saxony, said in a statement. Ducati's Marc Marquez won the German Grand Prix on Sunday to extend his world championship lead to 83 points, proving once again why he is known as the 'King of Sachsenring' after claiming his ninth MotoGP victory at the circuit. — REUTERS
Local Germany
03-07-2025
- Climate
- Local Germany
Wildfires trigger evacuations in eastern Germany
A disaster alert for wildfires was issued for three communities in the Gohrischheide forest on the border between the states of Saxony and Brandenburg on Thursday. According to the emergency warning app Nina , the Saxon communities of Zeithain and Wülknitz and the town of Gröditz are affected and evacuations are underway. At least two firefighters have been seriously injured according to media reports. The fire in the Gohrischheide broke out on Tuesday, with firefighters battling the flames since then. Saxony's Minister President Michael Kretschmer (CDU) plans to visit the site in the afternoon to get an update on the current situation. Multiple evacuations Reports on the extent of the fire have varied considerably: The district administration reported on Thursday that 200 hectares had burned. However, according to firefighters on site, the fire is said to cover an area of around 1,000 hectares. Authorities also noted potential hazards due to the risk that ammunition left on a former military training area could detonate in the blaze. The villages of Heidehäuser and Neudorf and parts of the village of Lichtensee have been evacuated, including forty-five residents in a home for severely disabled people in the Wülknitz district of Heidehäuser have also been moved. More than 500 emergency personnel have been called into action in both states. Advertisement Fire in southern Thuringia Fires were also reported in southern Thuringia. According to an expert, the forest fire on the Saalfelder Höhe has reached a scale not seen in the state for more than 30 years. Figures on the extent of the fire that broke out on Wednesday in the Saalfeld-Rudolstadt district are still pending, said Horst Sproßmann, press spokesman for the Thuringia Forestry Agency. 'But it is still by far the largest forest fire we've had in Thuringia since 1993,' he told the German Press Agency. With reporting by DPA.
Russia Today
25-05-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
German politician urges talks on restoring Nord Stream
Germany should consider adopting a 'positive approach' toward Moscow that would including restoring the Nord Stream gas pipelines, Michael Kretschmer, the prime minister of the state of Saxony in eastern Germany, has argued. The current hostile policy has been unproductive and has only harmed Germany's economy, the politician, who also serves as one of the deputy heads of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party, said in an interview with Die Zeit on Sunday. 'Nord Stream is a possible opening for a conversation with Russia,' Kretschmer suggested, adding that such talks would benefit both nations. The German economy requires at least one-fifth of its gas supplies to come from Russia to function normally, he claimed. He also pointed out that various companies had begun relocating due to high production costs and energy prices. If the situation in the economy does not improve, Germany, not Russia, will have to 'change [its] course in one or two years,' he warned. Kretschmer's stance contrasts sharply with that of his party leader and federal chancellor, Friedrich Merz. Earlier this week, as part of a new sanctions push, Merz expressed support for an EU plan to ban any use of the Nord Stream gas pipelines and to block attempts to revive energy trade with Russia. The head of Saxony considers such an approach counterproductive. 'As long as we say that we don't want anything, we don't want gas supplies, we only impose sanctions, no one will talk to us,' he argued. The Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipeline systems were built under the Baltic Sea to deliver Russian natural gas directly to Germany. Each system consisting of two pipelines was capable of delivering up to 55 billion cubic meters of gas a year. Three out of the pipelines' four lines were destroyed by underwater explosions in September 2022 in an act of sabotage that Russia believes was orchestrated by Western intelligence agencies. European gas prices surged after the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022 as pipeline gas imports from Russia mostly ceased due to sanctions and the Nord Stream sabotage. In 2021, Russian pipeline gas accounted for 32% of the total demand of the EU and UK, while Germany relied on Russia for 55% of its consumption, according to the European Council.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Use Nord Stream as leverage in Russia talks, argues German premier
A senior German conservative leader is in favour using the possible reopening of the Nord Stream gas pipelines as leverage to get Russia to the negotiating table. "Nord Stream is a possible opening for talks with Russia," said Michael Kretschmer, the deputy chairman of Germany's governing Christian Democrats (CDU), in an interview with the Zeit Online outlet released on Sunday. Kretschmer, who also serves as the premier of the eastern state of Saxony, argued 20% of Germany's gas needs should be covered with imports from Russia. Germany used to be highly dependent on Russian gas imports before the war in Ukraine, with energy prices soaring when supplies were cut in the wake of the invasion. New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has backed the European Commission's plan to block reactivation of the pipelines as part of a new sanctions package against Russia, intended to pressure Moscow into ceasefire negotiations with Ukraine. But Kretschmer said he did not find this strategy particularly helpful, noting there were two options to get Russia to agree to talks. "Either you try to force Russia, as has been the case up to now, or you try a positive approach," he said, adding he was a clear proponent of the latter. "As long as we say: We don't want anything, we don't want gas supplies, we're just imposing sanctions, there's no point [for Russia] in talking to us." The Nord Stream project includes two pipelines - Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 - leading from Russia to Germany via the Baltic Sea. After supplying Europe with gas for more than 10 years via Nord Stream 1, Moscow halted deliveries following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Nord Stream 2, while completed, was yet to begin operations at that time. Three of the pipelines' four strands were damaged in September 2022 in what was widely believed to have been an act of sabotage. Kretschmer said reactivating Nord Stream would also boost the German economy, noting that many companies were leaving the country amid high production costs, with energy prices being a central issue. "It would greatly improve our situation if we could obtain around 20% of our gas from Russia," the state leader said. While Kretschmer said he currently doesn't see any willingness to change strategy in Berlin, he was certain that "if economic developments continue as they are, we will be forced to change course in one or two years."
