Germany

RUSSIA has been trying to jam British military satellites every week, according to the head of the UK Space Command.

Major General Paul Tedman accused Moscow of actively attempting to disrupt the UK’s space-based assets through constant stalking and manipulation tactics.

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Maj Gen Tedman told the BBC the disruptions are happening on a weekly basis.

He said: “We’re seeing our satellites being jammed by the Russians on a reasonably persistent basis.

“They’ve got payloads onboard that can see our satellites and are trying to collect information from them.

“They can jam, blind, manipulate or kinetically disrupt satellites.”

All six of the dedicated military satellites operated by the UK are equipped with counter-jamming technology, Tedman confirmed.

Britain continues to fall far behind other powerful nations in terms of their space surveillance systems.

The US, China and Russia each have more than a hundred in orbit.

Beijing and Moscow are both being viewed as potential threats, according to Gen Tedman.

He said both nations had tested anti-satellite weapons in recent years.

Both the UK and the US have warned that Russia is developing the capability to put nuclear weapons in space.

Speaking on the dangers of both countries, Gen Tedman said: “I would say the Chinese have by far the more sophisticated capability but the Russians have more will to use their counter-space systems.”

The UK government is now promising to invest more space missile defence – including plans to test sensors to detect laser threats in space.

Russia’s interference on an astral level comes after Germany’s Defence Minister, Boris Pistorius, also blasted Russia for shadowing satellites used by their military last month.

Berlin said a pair of Russian satellites were “pursuing” space capsules used by Germany’s armed forces.

Pistorius called for talks to draw up offensive capabilities in space as a deterrent – and revealed that Germany will spend $41billion on space defence by 2030.

It comes months after a secretive Russian “killer satellite” was detected launching another mysterious flying object near a US spacecraft.

Kosmos-2558 is on an orbital path which is suspiciously close to USA-326 – an American spy satellite.

It is believed to have the capacity to monitor enemy spy satellites – and potentially shoot them down if needed.

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And last year, Putin launched a terrifying weapon system into space – capable of killing other satellites.

The Russian space object, believed to be Cosmos-2576, was launched on a Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket.

In response to growing international tensions, the UK and the US conducted their first coordinated satellite manoeuvre in space in September.

Defence officials hailed it as a major step forward in allied space cooperation.

The mission saw a US satellite be repositioned in orbit to inspect a UK satellite and confirm it was functioning properly.

The test formed part of Operation Olympic Defender – a joint military framework aimed at improving satellite defence and resilience.

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THREE suspected Hamas terrorists appeared in court in Germany yesterday as police claimed to have foiled a chilling terror plot.

The trio – caught with weapons including an AK47 assault rifle, pistols and ammunition – were feared to be about to export October 7-style horror to Europe.

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Investigators believed they were plotting attacks on Israeli or Jewish sites – like the synagogue attacked in Manchester yesterday.

Germany’s federal prosecutor alleged that they had been procuring firearms in recent months to prepare for a terrorist massacre.

Several pistols and a large cache of ammunition were among weapons taken when police swooped 24 hours before the Manchester attack.

No evidence of a connection between the two incidents had emerged last night – but fears of Palestinian terror spreading across Europe was sparking security concerns.

Two of the Berlin suspects are German citizens but the third was said to have been born in Lebanon.

They were named only as – named as Abed Al G, Wael F M and Ahmad I.

Hamas has carried out hundreds of attacks against Israeli civilians but rarely operated outside the region and they denied involvement.

Details of the plot remained unclear last night – and it was also uncertain whether they were acting on Hamas orders or were self-motivated Palestinian sympathisers.

The worrying arrests came as Hamas appeared spent as a fighting force in Gaza as Donald Trump called on them to surrender or face an unbridled Israeli onslaught.

A German federal judge ruled that the Berlin trio should remain in jail ahead of a full trial for alleged membership in a foreign terrorist organization and plotting serious acts of violence.

Police arrested members of Hamas in Berlin in December 2023 when four suspects were feared to be plotting to attack Jewish institutions in Europe.

Protesters in cities around the world have condemned Israel’s interception of the humanitarian flotilla bound for Gaza and the detention of activists in international waters.

Oct. 1 (UPI) — Three men suspected of being Hamas members were arrested on a number of charges by authorities in Germany.

German federal prosecutors said Wednesday that three men arrested in Berlin on suspicion of being members of Iran’s terror syndicate Hamas were accused of gathering weaponry in order to carry out scores of planned attacks on Israeli or Jewish institutions, according to The Washington Post, CBS News and CNN.

“Since at least the summer of 2025,” prosecutors stated, the three have been “involved in procuring firearms and ammunition” for Hamas.

They added two of the men were German citizens and the third identified as Lebanese.

According to officials, the three were identified as 44-year-old Syrian national Ahmad I., Abed Al G., 36, and 43-year-old Lebanon-born Wael F. M.

Prosecutors in Berlin charged them with membership in a foreign terrorist group and organizing an act of anti-state violence after police seized a stockpile of ammunition and weapons, including a slew of pistols and AK-47 assault gun.

On Thursday, they will be in front a judge to determine if the three should be held in detention before a later trial.

The arrests came just days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to a 20-point U.S.-backed plan to end the bloody war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, now with credible U.N.-backed accusations of genocide, after he met Monday with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington.

It followed last month’s United Nations General Assembly vote to back an independent Palestinian-run state that exists without leadership by Hamas militants as a condition.

The men are suspected of of being ‘foreign operatives’ for Hamas and will appear in court Thursday, prosecutors say.

German authorities have arrested three men suspected of preparing a serious act of violence against Jewish targets in Germany, allegedly on behalf of the Palestinian group Hamas.

Prosecutors say they suspect the three men of being “foreign operatives” for Hamas and of being involved in procuring firearms and ammunition for attacks targeting Israeli or Jewish institutions in Germany.

“In the course of today’s arrests, various weapons, including an AK-47 assault rifle and several pistols, as well as a considerable amount of ammunition, were found,” the federal prosecutors said in a statement.

The three men, identified under German privacy laws only as German citizen Abed Al G, Wael FM, born in Lebanon, and German citizen Ahmad I, were arrested in Berlin on Wednesday. A security source said the three were in their 30s or 40s.

The suspects are set to appear in court on Thursday, when a judge will determine whether the trio will be held in custody before trial.

Hamas is designated as a “terrorist” organisation by Germany, as well as the European Union (EU) as a whole.

In February, four Hamas members suspected of plotting attacks on Jewish institutions in Europe went on trial in Berlin in what prosecutors described as the first court case against members of the Palestinian group in Germany.

“Anti-terrorism” investigators observed the suspects meeting in Berlin for a weapon handover before operational forces intervened and discovered functional weapons, including a Glock pistol, a spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office said.

Forensic technicians are examining the arsenal, and searches have also taken place in the eastern city of Leipzig, where one of the suspects lives. Authorities also conducted a search in Oberhausen in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, the spokesperson added.

Germany is one of Israel’s strongest allies due to the legacy of the Holocaust, and security is tight at synagogues and other Jewish institutions. It did not join France, the United Kingdom and several other countries last month in recognising Palestinian statehood.

Hamas has carried out hundreds of attacks against Israeli civilians over the years, but it has rarely operated outside Israel and the Palestinian territories. Questions will likely be raised over whether the suspects were acting on orders from Hamas’s leadership or if they were merely sympathisers with Hamas or the Palestinian cause.

The arrests come as Israel continues its genocidal war on Gaza despite mounting global outcry and repeated appeals for a ceasefire. At the same time, Israel has enforced a crippling aid blockade on the enclave, where most of its two million residents have been displaced multiple times and are now facing famine and extreme hunger.

Israeli forces have killed at least 66,148 Palestinians since the assault began nearly two years ago, according to local health officials, though experts warn the true toll could be three times higher.

The arrests also took place as Hamas said it would study US President Donald Trump’s peace proposal to end the war.

Tens of thousands of people have also recently rallied in Berlin, protesting German support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Demonstrators marched over the weekend following a call from a broad coalition of some 50 groups, including pro-Palestinian organisations, Medico International, Amnesty International, and the opposition Left Party, for a large demonstration.

They demanded “an end to German complicity” in Israel’s war and called for “an end to all military cooperation with Israel,” including “the import, export, and transit of weapons, ammunition, and other military equipment”.

Germany is the latest country to announce plans for a missile-toting new class of uncrewed vessels that will serve as arsenal ship ‘wingmen,’ supporting conventional surface combatants. The Large Remote Missile Vessels (LRMV) are part of the German Navy’s modernization drive and may be especially relevant to help offset limitations in the firepower of some of its other warships, an issue we have discussed in the past.

The plan to procure three LRMVs is outlined in the German Navy’s Kurs Marine document, which outlines the fleet that it wants to operate by 2035. While the LRMVs will serve as arsenal ships to supplement the new class of F127 frigates, the German Navy also wants to buy 18 smaller uncrewed surface vessels, known as Future Combat Surface Systems (FCSS), to supplement its corvettes, and at least 12 Large Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (LUUV) to support its submarines.

The most striking development, however, concerns the LRMV, which is planned from the outset for uncrewed operations, although presumably they could also be used in an optionally crewed capacity.

It’s not exactly clear what kind of size the LRMVs will be. Presuming a diagram published in the Kurs Marine document is fairly accurate, they would be around half the length of the F127 frigate, which would make them around 260 feet long, roughly corvette-sized. However, according to the German defense and security website hartpunkt, citing naval insiders, the dimensions and displacement of the vessels hadn’t been determined, so not too much should be read into the diagram.

Clearer is the role that the LRMVs will undertake, essentially as floating missile platforms that can bolster the magazine capacity of the planned six F127 frigates, in particular. The arsenal ships will be equipped with vertical launchers for different missiles, to support the F127’s air defense and maritime strike taskings. The number of launch containers is also not yet finalized, hartpunkt reports. Meanwhile, the F127 is expected to feature 64 cells, as part of the popular Mk 41 vertical launch system (VLS).

The VLS cells in the LRMV will likely be loaded with the same weapons that arm the F127 frigate: Standard Missile 2 (SM-2) for general-area air defense and RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missiles (ESSM) for short-/medium-range air defense. They could also possibly field SM-6 for long-range air and missile defense, as well as strike, and Tomahawk cruise missiles for longer range strike. SM-6 and Tomahawk would require longer “strike length” VLS cells. The preliminary artwork in the Kurs Marine document shows an array of vertical launchers mounted, at least partly, above the deck at the rear of the ship. However, this should be considered highly provisional.

The German government is currently reviewing a plan to buy the Tomahawk, which would place it in an elite operators’ club. Other options could include the 3SM Tyrfing supersonic cruise naval missile currently being developed by Germany and Norway, and potentially even the new “deep precision strike” weapon, a missile with a range of over 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) that Germany and the United Kingdom are working on.

In its air defense role, the ‘parent’ frigate would be responsible for target detection and targeting, commanding missile launches from the smaller LRMV, which will effectively serve as additional floating magazine capacity. This also means the LRMV doesn’t need to accommodate its own expensive sensors. Alternatively, another surface vessel could provide the data, or it could be received from any other platform, with data relayed via satellite link.

Reportedly, the LRMV would also carry some limited self-defense armament, which would presumably have to be controlled from another (crewed) platform.

While seen as a ‘wingman’ to the F127 frigate, it could also complement the anti-submarine-warfare-optimized F126 class of frigates. As we have discussed before, these warships are comparatively lightly armed for their size, with a Mk 41 VLS for up to 64 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) Block 2 missiles, and launchers for eight Kongsberg Naval Strike Missiles (NSM), but no current plans to arm them with Standard Missiles or Tomahawk.

The LRMV makes an interesting parallel with the two new support vessels planned for the Royal Netherlands Navy. These ships will be around 174 feet long and will displace around 600 tons, including containerized weapons and sensors for a variety of different missions, and a relatively tiny crew. Like the German design, the Dutch support vessels will bring additional air defense missiles to help existing Dutch frigates.

As well as being entirely uncrewed, the LRMV is also intended to operate in very different conditions. While the Dutch support vessel is optimized for use in the North Sea and for patrol duties, the LRMV will be an ocean-going design that can serve in the Atlantic. The German ships will need to have much more robust seaworthiness and will likely need to be considerably larger.

On the other hand, the operating concept for the LRMV foresees them loitering in a specific sea area for an extended period, so they won’t necessarily have to have the same level of performance as the F127 frigate, or an equivalent surface combatant.

While the shipbuilding phase for the LRMV is not necessarily a significant challenge, Germany will still need to develop resilient and reliable command and communications to ensure the ships can operate safely in a potentially highly contested environment. Experience with the Future Combat Surface System (FCSS) program, for a more modest arsenal ship, should help in this regard. Having a lower-cost supplement to the F127 class is also a key consideration, with the new frigates being the most expensive current German defense procurement, with a program cost of more than $30 billion for all six ships.

Overall, Germany’s plans for the LRMV reflect a growing interest in support vessels with an arsenal ship role. These tend to be either uncrewed or with very small crews, and they are indicative of the current operational realities, in which conventional ships threaten to be overwhelmed by massed missile and drone attacks.

The need to boost naval air defense coverage, in particular, has been made clear by the campaign against Houthi missiles and drones targeting shipping in the Middle East in recent months, as well as Iran’s unprecedented, massed attack on Israel, using the same kinds of weapons. In particular, the limited stock of air defense missiles found on most warships has emerged as a concern, and one that the support vessels will help address. Developments elsewhere in the world, including in China, suggest that swarming drones as well as ever more capable missiles will be a feature of naval warfare from now on.

These same concerns are seeing interest in the United States and other countries in large uncrewed surface vessels with modular weapons payloads, allowing them to be adapted for a range of missions as required. While it’s unclear what kind of modularity the LRMV might offer, having an uncrewed ship, even simply to increase the basic weapons magazine available to surface combatants, could be very useful for the German Navy and help pave the way toward more regular and extensive uncrewed operations at sea.

At the same time, there are a lot of unknowns about actually operating an uncrewed ship equipped with heavy armament on operational patrols and over great distances. Command and control and networking architecture will be a huge factor in the success of any such concept. There are also security concerns, clearly. The idea that more naval capacity can be relatively inexpensively gained through uncrewed surface combatants of the larger variety is extremely attractive, but actually doing it reliably is still something that’s yet to be seen on a wide operational scale.

Contact the author: [email protected]

Iran is facing new pressure due to its nuclear programme.

European powers have re-imposed sanctions that were lifted as part of a landmark 2015 nuclear agreement.

They target Iran’s banking, oil, and other crucial sectors. There is also an embargo on arms imports.

Western allies say Iran has not been cooperating with the United Nations nuclear watchdog, and that its nuclear programme poses a threat to international security.

Tehran has always maintained that its nuclear programme is for civilian use, and says it is ready to weather the storm.

So, is there still room for diplomacy?

Presenter: Nick Clark

Guests:

Ellie Geranmayeh – senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, and a specialist in Europe-Iran relations

Mark Fitzpatrick – former US diplomat, and associate fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies

Marzie Khalilian – Iranian political analyst and researcher at Carleton University, focusing on US-Middle East relations.

As many as 100,000 people in Berlin rallied in support of Palestinians in what was Germany’s largest Gaza protest to date. The demonstration, dubbed ‘All Eyes on Gaza’, demanded an end to German support for Israel. Police were filmed violently arresting participants.

More than 100,000 people rallied in Berlin, protesting against German support for Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip.

Demonstrators marched from Berlin’s City Hall to the Grosser Stern on Saturday, following a call from a broad coalition of some 50 groups, including pro-Palestinian organisations, Medico International, Amnesty International, and the opposition Left Party, for a large demonstration.

Organisers of the All Eyes on Gaza – Stop the Genocide rally demanded “an end to German complicity” in Israel’s genocidal war in the Palestinian enclave.

They also called for “an end to all military cooperation with Israel. This includes the import, export, and transit of weapons, ammunition, and other military equipment.”

“The actions of the Israeli government have long been described as genocide by experts and international organisations, and the International Court of Justice is investigating them as such. While it is clear that the Israeli military is committing mass atrocities in Gaza, the German government continues to deny the systematic violence,” organisers said in a statement.

The crowd chanted “Free, free Palestine” and “Viva Palestine”, holding up posters reading “Stop the genocide in Gaza”, “Never again for all”, and “Freedom for Palestine”. Many protesters also waved Palestinian flags.

They called for an immediate halt to German arms exports to Israel, for humanitarian aid access to Gaza, and for European Union sanctions against Israel.

A new survey released on Tuesday showed that 62 percent of German voters believe Israeli actions in Gaza constitute genocide, putting mounting pressure on the centre-right government to reassess its stance towards Israel.

The representative poll, conducted by YouGov, indicated that this sentiment crosses political lines, with 60 percent of voters from Merz’s conservative CDU/CSU bloc viewing Israel’s military campaign as genocide against Palestinians. Among voters of the coalition partner Social Democratic Party (SPD), the figure was higher at 71 percent.

While Chancellor Merz and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul have recently sharpened their criticism of Israel’s military offensive and blockade of humanitarian aid to Gaza, they have so far avoided using the term genocide, referring instead to the “disproportionate” use of force by the Israeli military. Nor have they decided to recognise the State of Palestine, as many other nations have in recent days, including France, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada.

The UK, France and Germany have called on Iran not to escalate tensions and to pursue negotiations after UN sanctions were reinstated on Saturday.

The three countries said they had “no choice” but to bring back the sweeping measures against Tehran “as a last resort” over its “continued nuclear escalation” and lack of cooperation.

“We urge Iran to refrain from any escalatory action,” they said in a joint statement, adding: “The reimposition of UN sanctions is not the end of diplomacy.”

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted last week that the country had no intention of developing nuclear weapons, and condemned the re-imposition of international sanctions as “unfair, unjust, and illegal”.

The United Nations’ sweeping economic and military sanctions were reimposed on Iran at 00:00 GMT on Saturday – a decade after they were lifted in a landmark international deal over its nuclear programme.

Iran stepped up banned nuclear activity after the US quit the deal in 2016. Donald Trump pulled the US out in his first term as president, criticising the deal – the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – negotiated under his predecessor Barack Obama, as flawed.

Talks between the three countries and Iran on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly earlier this week failed to produce a deal which would have delayed the sanctions being reimposed.

In a joint statement early on Sunday, the foreign ministers of the three European countries, known as the E3, said: “Given that Iran repeatedly breached these commitments, the E3 had no choice but to trigger the snapback procedure, at the end of which those resolutions were brought back into force.”

In the meantime, they said they would “continue to pursue diplomatic routes and negotiations”.

They cited Iran’s failure to “take the necessary actions to address our concerns, nor to meet our asks on extension, despite extensive dialogue”.

Specifically, they mentioned Tehran’s refusal to cooperate with the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA.

“Iran has not authorised IAEA inspectors to regain access to Iran’s nuclear sites, nor has it produced and transmitted to the IAEA a report accounting for its stockpile of high-enriched uranium,” the statement read.

Iran suspended IAEA inspection after Israel and the US bombed several of its nuclear sites and military bases in June.

Under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran is legally obliged to allow inspections of its nuclear sites, and on Friday, the IAEA confirmed that they had resumed.

But while Iran has been in talks with the IAEA to find a way forward, it has also warned that a return of sanctions will put that in jeopardy.

Pezeshkian has walked back from his earlier threats for Iran to quit the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

But, speaking to reporters on Friday, he added that Tehran would need reassurances that its nuclear facilities would not be attacked by Israel in order to normalise its nuclear enrichment programme.

He also rejected a US demand to hand over all of Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium in return for a three-month exemption from sanctions, saying: “Why would we put ourselves in such a trap and have a noose around our neck each month?”

Iran said on Saturday it was recalling its ambassadors to Britain, France and Germany for consultations.

German defense startup Helsing unveiled its first major weapons platform on Thursday: the CA-1 Europa, an autonomous combat drone it hopes will compete with American and European defense giants in shaping the future of aerial warfare. The full-size prototype, presented near Munich, will undergo its first test flights in 2027, with operational readiness targeted by 2031.

Weighing four tonnes and designed with a V-tail and angular stealth features, the Europa belongs to the growing class of Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs). These drones, powered by AI and designed to operate either independently or alongside crewed fighter jets in “loyal wingman” formations, reflect a shift toward cheaper, expendable systems that can survive in contested airspaces.

Why It Matters
The Europa marks Germany’s entry into the race for next-generation combat drones, a field already dominated by U.S. firms like General Atomics and startups like Anduril. For Europe, where air defense has become a strategic priority amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, the project signals an attempt to reduce reliance on U.S. platforms and create indigenous systems that match NATO’s evolving needs.

The unveiling also highlights the accelerating role of AI in military operations. Unlike traditional drones used for reconnaissance or strikes, UCAVs are designed for complex missions: jamming enemy radar, acting as decoys, or swarming in coordination with other drones. Their relatively low cost compared to fighter jets, Helsing says “a fraction” makes them attractive to militaries facing budget pressures and the risk of attrition in high-intensity conflict.

What Can Happen Next
If successful, Helsing’s project could become a cornerstone of a more integrated European defense-industrial base. The company has pledged hundreds of millions of euros in investment and partnerships with other European firms, potentially aligning with EU initiatives to foster defense autonomy. However, challenges remain: regulatory hurdles over autonomous weapons, questions about AI ethics in combat, and competition from established aerospace giants.

For NATO, the Europa represents both opportunity and uncertainty. It may bolster Europe’s credibility within the alliance, but also raises thorny debates about the pace of automation in warfare. As Ukraine’s battlefield has shown, drone innovation moves faster than regulation, meaning Helsing’s Europa could become a test case for how Europe balances military necessity with democratic oversight.

With information from Reuters

THIS is the moment the new world’s fastest car hit its record breaking speed of 308mph.

The Yangwang U9 Xtreme from BYD has now officially been crowned the new world’s fastest car – and it’s electric.

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It follows a test drive that was carried out at the German Automatic Testing Papenburg, driven by Marc Basseng.

Yangwang has now released the footage of this record-breaking run on the ATP Papenburg’s high speed oval that was achieved last week.

Basseng can be seen sitting calmly in the car with his helmet on, as the car seems to be rapidly accelerating through the track.

He exits the 49.7 degree banking at over 186mph (300kph).

Then floor it down the main straight to reach the peak speed of 308.4mph.

Basseng can then be seen celebrating the amazing milestone.

He gives a shout, a clap, and removes both hands off the wheel while still going at at 218mph.

The new Yangwang U9 Xtreme is a special edition of the Yangway U9 hypercar which is currently on sale in China.

Basseng also reached the 233 mph in the original Yangway U9 in 2024, and 292mph over the summer.

The Bugatti Chiron Super Sport 300+ is the only other one that remains above it in speed, after being driven at 304.7mph.

Following the drive, Basseng said: “This record was only possible because the U9 Xtreme simply has incredible performance.

“Technically, something like this is not possible with a combustion engine.

“Thanks to the electric motor, the car is quiet, there are no load changes, and that allows me to focus even more on the track.”

Yangway has said it will sell “no more than 30” of these vehicles.

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It is the first in any production car to run a 1,200-volt electrical system.

The standard is 800-volt.

It also has a lithium ion phosphate battery with the familiar blade configuration of BYD models.

To exceed speeds of 300mph on the track, the car has revised DiSus-X suspension and semi-slick tyres.

And a hefty kerb weight of 2,480kg.

The Yangwang U9 Xtreme may usher a new era of electric supercars to challenge traditional petrol vehicles known for hitting top speed records 

GERMANY’S army is preparing its forces to treat 1,000 injured troops a day as the prospect of a war between NATO and Russia looms ever larger.

Berlin’s war planning lays bare the scale of devastation that such a conflict would unleash upon the continent.

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The Kremlin denies that it wants a war against Russia’s Western rivals.

But recent incursions of military jets into NATO airspace has amplified fears that Putin has his sights on members of the alliance.

Since Russia‘s brutal invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Western countries have been forced to reckon with the prospect of a major war breaking out on European soil once again.

It has prompted military leaders to warn of the scale of casualties that could come if Moscow attacked the alliance.

Germany’s Surgeon General Ralf Hoffmann told Reuters that the exact number would depend on the intensity of fighting.

But he said: “Realistically, we are talking about a figure of around 1,000 wounded troops per day.”

Berlin is far from the only country to ramp up planning for mass casualties in the face of Russian sabre-rattling.

France has also placed its hospitals on a war-footing, with health bosses ordered to be ready for a “major engagement” by March 2026.

In anticipation of a large influx of wounded soldiers, Paris has ordered the country’s health centres to integrate the “specific needs of defence” into their planning.

They want French hospitals to be prepared to take in not only their own country’s injured troops, but also those of NATO allies.

Hoffmann added that Germany needs to look to the war in Ukraine to adapt how it approaches medical training for the battlefield.

“The Ukrainians often cannot evacuate their wounded fast enough because drones are buzzing overhead everywhere,” he warned.

Flexible transport options would be needed to get injured troops out of harm’s way, Hoffmann said, such as how Ukraine has used hospital trains.

Germany’s chief of defence General Carsten Breuer issued a stark warning this summer as to how soon a Russian attack could come.

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He told the BBC that Moscow’s increased military production represents a “a very serious threat” that could come as soon as 2029.

“This is what the analysts are assessing – in 2029. So we have to be ready by 2029,” he warned.

“If you ask me now, is this a guarantee that’s not earlier than 2029?

“I would say no, it’s not. So we must be able to fight tonight.”

In Britain, government officials are hurriedly updating decades-old contingency plans to protect the country in the event of Russian aggression.

Former NATO commander Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon previously told The Sun: “Britain is very much in the sights of Putin’s derision, and we are the ones likely to be attacked first.

“Britain really has got to dust off its contingency plans.

“Over 20 years of neglect, and we understand that’s exactly what this report is about at the moment.”

An assault on one NATO country by Russia would require all other member states to take up arms in their support.

This is because of the alliance’s Article 5 protection guarantee, which makes an attack on one an attack on all.

Fears of confrontation with Russia have spiked since Moscow’s air force launched incursions into NATO airspace in recent weeks.

Russian MiG-31 fighters entered the skies over Estonia earlier this month, prompting Western jets to be scrambled in response to shoo them away.

Moscow’s drones have also entered Polish and Romanian airspace over the past weeks.

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Published on
22/09/2025 – 15:00 GMT+2

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Porsche’s share price slid over 7% on Monday afternoon after the firm slashed its profit outlook and postponed the rollout of an electric range.

Shares in Volkswagen, Porsche’s largest shareholder, were also down over 7% on Monday afternoon.

Porsche made the announcements on Friday, warning that the EV pivot would dent its operating profits by €1.8 billion this year.

It forecast a positive return on sales of up to 2%, down from a previous range of 5 to 7%. The announcement marked the fourth time this year the carmaker has lowered its guidance.

Porsche said that its new SUV series, previously intended to be all-electric, would “initially be offered exclusively as a combustion engine and plug-in hybrid model due to market conditions”.

The firm added that a new software platform for EVs, planned for the 2030s, would also be delayed. Simultaneously, Porsche’s existing combustion engine models will remain available for a longer period.

The Volkswagen Group, parent company of Porsche, said in a separate statement that it expected a €5.1bn hit to its operating profits this year because of Porsche’s poor performance.

Challenges for the industry in Europe

Europe’s carmakers are struggling with lacklustre demand for their EVs as Chinese competitors continue to lead on innovation and price, partly thanks to generous subsidies from Beijing.

Adding to their woes is an economic slowdown in China, denting consumer appetite in Asian markets, paired with vacillating political support for EVs in Europe.

Some firms, including VW, are hoping that the EU will allow for some flexibility on its pledge to ban combustion engine cars from 2035. On the other hand, a lack of clarity over this deadline, along with the rollback of consumer subsidies, is making it hard for companies to plan and make investment decisions.

Along with these challenges at home, proposed 15% tariffs from the Trump administration threaten to squeeze margins on EU exports to the US.

At the end of September, Porsche will leave the DAX, Germany’s leading stock index, after a dramatic slide in its share price. The firm’s stock has fallen over 30% this year.

In order to plug losses, the company is looking to cut jobs. In March, Porsche said it would axe around 1,900 posts by 2029 through natural turnover, restrictive hiring, and voluntary agreements. The company added that another 2,000 jobs would be lost through the expiration of fixed-term employment contracts.

German air force says its ‘quick reaction alert force’ was ordered by NATO to investigate Russian plane in neutral airspace.

Germany’s air force says it has scrambled two Eurofighter jets to track a Russian reconnaissance aircraft after it had entered neutral airspace over the Baltic Sea.

In a statement, the air force said its “quick reaction alert force” was ordered on Sunday by NATO to investigate an unidentified aircraft flying without a plan or radio contact.

“It was a Russian IL-20M reconnaissance aircraft. After visual identification, we handed over escort duties for the aircraft to our Swedish NATO partners and returned to Rostock-Laage,” it added.

The operation was conducted as NATO prepares to convene its North Atlantic Council on Tuesday to discuss a separate incident involving Russian jets over Estonia.

According to the Reuters news agency, that meeting is to address what Tallinn called an “unprecedented and brazen” violation of its airspace on Friday when three Russian MiG-31 fighters entered without permission and remained for 12 minutes before leaving.

The claim sparked condemnation from NATO and European governments, who called the incursion a “reckless” and “dangerous provocation”.

Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal requested urgent “NATO Article 4 consultations” on the “totally unacceptable” incursion. Article 4 allows NATO members to hold consultations with the alliance when any state believes its territorial integrity, political independence or security is under threat.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence denied the allegation while Estonia summoned Moscow’s charge d’affaires in protest.

Tensions have been heightened in recent weeks by a series of airspace violations along NATO’s eastern flank.

Romania said last week that its radar detected a Russian drone, prompting it to scramble fighter jets. Earlier this month, Poland reported that it had shot down several drones during a Russian aerial attack on Ukraine, marking the first time NATO forces have directly engaged in that conflict.

Ukraine has said the incidents show Moscow is testing the West’s resolve as the war is in its fourth year. Military analysts note that such incursions serve as intelligence-gathering operations, tests of NATO’s responses and pressure tactics designed to unsettle NATO members bordering Russia.

Cracks seem to be appearing in the pan-European Future Combat Air System (FCAS) program, at the heart of which will be the crewed New Generation Fighter (NGF). Reports now suggest that Germany, one of the two major partners in FCAS, is looking at how it might separate itself from France, amid long-running misgivings over workshare arrangements in this vital program.

According to Politico, the German Ministry of Defense discussed the future of FCAS last week with Airbus, which leads the German side of the program. The article cited two unnamed people familiar with those discussions. Reportedly, German defense officials are unhappy with French demands to have a disproportionate share of the program and are now examining other options.

The same article states that German Luftwaffe officials briefed Bundestag lawmakers on the issue earlier this week, quoting an official in the legislature.

According to reports in the German defense media, France is pushing for an 80 percent share of the work on the crewed NGF combat jet, something French officials have denied.

“At some point [the German] parliament will have to say: ‘Either we need this aircraft, or we don’t,’” Social Democratic lawmaker Andreas Schwarz told Politico.

Among the options the German government is said to be exploring is to continue with FCAS without France, although the feasibility of that is highly questionable.

The implication is that Germany would pursue FCAS alongside Spain, which joined the program later, followed by Belgium, as a junior partner. Both Germany and Spain have production lines for the Eurofighter Typhoon, but Germany has not designed and built a crewed combat jet, outside of a wider consortium, for many decades, while Spain has never embarked on such a program, other than as part of the pan-European Eurofighter program.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was in Madrid yesterday, where he discussed FCAS with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez.

“We share the assessment that the current situation is unsatisfactory. We are not advancing with this project,” Merz said. “We are both speaking with the French government, and we want a solution as soon as possible.”

On the other hand, whatever path Germany chooses, Spain and/or Belgium might still choose to stay with France, where Dassault Aviation leads that side of the program.

Other possibilities that the German government is said to be weighing up include Germany teaming up with the United Kingdom or Sweden.

Confusingly, the FCAS nomenclature is also used by British-led and Swedish future air combat initiatives, which also feature a crewed fighter at the center, as well as a range of supporting drones and other advanced technologies.

Like the pan-European equivalent, the U.K.-led FCAS is planned to include more than just a new crewed tactical jet, including uncrewed platforms, next-generation weapons, networks and data sharing, and more.

The Tempest fighter at the heart of the U.K. FCAS program also slots into an international collaborative program to field the aircraft, plus associated support and training, to the United Kingdom, Italy, and Japan. This effort is known as the Global Combat Air Program (GCAP).

Were Germany to join the U.K.-led FCAS/GCAP effort, it would therefore join Italy and Japan. The suggestion of the U.K.’s BAE Systems, which heads up the British FCAS program, joining Germany to develop a separate new-generation combat aircraft seems much less likely.

Interestingly, when he was chief of the German Luftwaffe, Lt. Gen. Ingo Gerhartz promoted efforts to bring the British and pan-European FCAS programs together by speaking with his Italian and British counterparts. “It can be that we go on different tracks,” Gerhartz told Defense News in 2021. “Hopefully, we will merge eventually.”

On the face of it, Sweden might seem like a more likely partner for Germany, although the country is at a much earlier stage in its FCAS thinking. So far, Saab has presented concepts for a potential new-generation crewed fighter and a series of drones intended to work alongside it.

At this point, it appears that Saab considers drones to be very much at the heart of its FCAS initiative, something that is perhaps not as immediately obvious with the rival British and pan-European programs, although that could change, especially if Germany plots a new course. Already, Airbus and Kratos are pitching the stealthy XQ-58A Valkyrie drone to the German Luftwaffe, and Airbus has also been working to fill an emerging niche for ‘loyal wingman’-type drones, including a stealthy CCA-like concept of its own, known as Wingman.

Saab was also previously involved with the British FCAS program before stepping aside from that.

For Germany, however, time is running out if it wants to reconfigure its position in FCAS and still achieve the goal of replacing its current Eurofighter combat aircraft with a new ‘system of systems,’ including a crewed fighter, around 2040. The U.K.-led FCAS also hopes to field a new fighter and supporting systems around the same time. With that in mind, it’s reported that German officials want guarantees about their country’s role in the program before the end of the year.

In the medium term, Germany’s need for an advanced crewed combat aircraft will be offset somewhat by the arrival of the F-35A, 35 of which are on order, initially to replace the Tornado swing-wing combat jet in the nuclear strike role. Interestingly, reports from earlier this summer suggested that Berlin might be interested in buying another 15 F-35As, for a total of 50, as a bridging solution before FCAS, although officials subsequently denied that was a plan — for the time being, at least.

Now, more than ever, there appears to be a real possibility of Germany and France going their separate ways in the pan-European FCAS, although whether that will lead to four separate FCAS efforts in Europe (including Sweden’s) seems much less likely. Already, there are serious questions about the ability of the continent to sustain a program as expensive and complex as this, especially without guarantees of significant export sales or foreign investment.

The pan-European FCAS may well be at something of a crossroads now, with the defense ministers from France, Germany, and Spain due to meet next month to hammer out the details of the program’s future.

The results of those talks will likely influence whether the program moves into Phase 2, in which the companies involved will produce a demonstrator aircraft. Such a decision is due before the end of this year.

Even then, however, it might not be too late for things to change.

It’s worth recalling that France was originally part of the European consortium that eventually developed and produced the Eurofighter, before leaving that program’s progenitor, and going it alone with the Dassault-developed Rafale.

As far as France’s position on FCAS is concerned, it appears that officials want to speed up the program, in particular wanting to have more control over decision-making, rather than having to discuss details with German and French partners, increasing the risk of delays. This appears to apply to the NGF combat jet, in particular.

While the pan-European FCAS has long been dogged by disputes over workshare arrangements, the timing of the current tensions could hardly be worse. The timeline to get the aircraft and other systems into service is already very tight, and the countries involved are seeking to build up their armed forces in the face of a growing Russian threat on NATO’s eastern flank. More immediately, the French political situation is also in some disarray.

It’s by no means clear that the current frictions will lead to a major reshaping of the pan-European FCAS, and perhaps even alter the paths of rival efforts in Europe. At the very least, however, such issues are likely to delay what is already a highly ambitious and technologically demanding effort.

Contact the author: [email protected]

HARD as it is to accept, if the prime McCann suspect disappears after his release from prison he’ll take all hope of solving the Maddie case with him. And I know who is to blame.

Prime suspect Christian Brueckner, 49, was given a meagre seven years behind bars for tying up, torturing and raping a pensioner in 2005, in Praia da Luz – the same village Maddie disappeared from two years later, but has now been released.

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When he was sentenced in 2019 – after witnesses and DNA tied him to the dreadful attack – he was already a multi-convicted paedophile targeting girls as young as five and with a known obsession for brutal sexual attacks, which he privately fantasised over.

But thanks to Germany’s soft-touch justice system, he has now walked free from prison despite warnings he could reoffend, serving the same sentence a violent burglar would have faced in Britain.

And was his time behind bars tough? One lag told The Sun that JVA Sehnde prison – where Brueckner was caged – is “like Starbucks,” full of friendly staff, abundant coffee and individual TVs and electrical goods provided for every inmate.

The harsh reality is that the paltry sentence Brueckner was handed by a judge is not out of the ordinary in Germany.

Critics have described the justice system as so farcical that it has become “accommodating” to criminals and “a blessing” to violent crooks and sex attackers.

In fact, you can look no further than ten miles from the prison where McCann suspect Brueckner was housed.

In Hanover, a man dubbed “The Maschsee Murderer” isn’t hiding or scraping by after his awful crime – he is enjoying a thriving social media existence.

In 1997, Alexander K lured a friend to Lake Maschsee, strangled her, dismembered the body and dumped the remains in the water.

The right-wing extremist was sentenced to just 15 years behind bars and was simply released after serving his term, despite the brutality of his crime.

Since then, Alexander has become a TikTok phenomenon with followers fascinated by him arranging dates through apps while he openly talks about his dark past.

He would go on to post pictures and videos of women he enjoyed dinner with, callously wearing T-shirts that read: “I survived a date with the Maschsee Murderer.”

While exploiting such an unforgivable crime is forbidden in the UK, Alexander has capitalised on his past, turning his vile reputation into a source of danger tourism.

Such a clear mockery of victims and the justice system suggests Brueckner could easily disappear without a trace after his release.

Another case close to Brueckner’s former jailhouse in Hanover highlights the uphill battles faced in monitoring offenders – and keeping their victims safe and reassured.

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Vanessa Münstermann’s life was transformed forever when a jilted ex took revenge by throwing acid in her face – causing her agonising pain and a lifetime of disfigurement.

The 29-year-old beautician lost an eye and an ear after she was attacked while walking her dog – and was forced to undergo surgery for years afterwards to treat her injuries.  

Critics have described the justice system as so farcical it has become ‘accommodating’ to criminals and ‘a blessing’ to violent crooks and sex attackers

A judge at the time described it as “an extreme crime with extreme consequences”.

Yet her former lover is set to be released imminently after just SIX years behind bars.

Panicked Vanessa – worried about retribution – has been trying to get officials to slap him with an electronic tag to monitor his movements and include conditions not to go near her.

Despite fighting for more than two years, there are no signs of success.

Maddie suspect released

German investigators also faced a similar uphill battle before Brueckner’s release, but it appears their calls for the sex offender to be tagged have been granted.

He officially left the high-security prison in Sehnde near Hanover just after 9:15am German time yesterday morning.

The rapist was even given breakfast before being driven away in his lawyer’s black Audi A6.

A chilling image showed Brueckner wearing a red and white striped shirt as he sat in the rear seat with his hand up in the air.

Brueckner has refused to rule out fleeing Germany now that he is free, sparking fears he could slip into a non-extradition country and dodge justice forever – even if a major Maddie breakthrough is found.

Officials have tried all they can to keep track of him, with an electronic tag being mandated and the seizure of his passport.

But investigators still worry Brueckner could flee Germany despite his conditions due to no passport being required to move freely within mainland Europe.

If he crosses the German border, then it’s believed the tag would no longer work, making him untraceable.

But let’s be clear – while the German justice as a whole has allowed Brueckner to walk free, German prosecutors, the courts, and police forces can only work with the laws of their country, which appear to be stacked heavily in Maddie suspect’s favour.

This is the situation justice officials face in Germany.

In the UK, murder attracts an automatic whole-of-life sentence. Judges set a minimum tariff — usually 20–30 years, but it can be longer.

Whole-life terms are possible in the most serious cases, meaning a prisoner will never be released.

In Germany, most killers would expect to be released after just 15 years.

In the UK, violent rapists – such as Christian Brueckner – would expect to be jailed for up to 15 years – or longer if there are aggravating factors.

Post-release monitoring exists in almost every case, making it the rule rather than the exception.

In Germany, rapists can enjoy just two years behind bars, while those with longer sentences of up to ten years are usually released early.

German law offers no way back – no remedy after the case to protect its citizens from such a threat

Terrorists face life behind bars in the UK, but often just 10–15 years in Germany, again with early release after two-thirds of the sentence has been served.

Armed robbers get 10–20 years in the UK, but as little as just five years in Germany.

Britain makes extensive use of probation, electronic tagging, Sexual Harm Prevention Orders, and lifelong licence conditions for high-risk offenders. Breaches can mean immediate recall to prison. 

German authorities face a battle just to fit electronic tags – as shown by Brueckner’s case.

There are fewer conditions upon release – and sometimes none at all – and post-release monitoring can be as little as a weekly phone call, even for society-threatening offenders such as Brueckner.

The judge who handed Brueckner the current soft sentence from which he was yesterday released is the same judge behind his sensational acquittal for rape and sex attacks on children last year.

It’s hard not to question the court’s attitude to that trial last year. It spent years trying to reject the case but was forced to take it on by a higher court and there has been private speculation over the bad blood of being forced to take such an unwanted case.

But experts have told me the judge did exactly her job and followed German law to the letter.

Perhaps her only mistake was failing to slap an order on Brueckner at his 2019 sentence that would have given officials the option to keep him behind bars, given the extraordinary danger he poses to the public.

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The argument for Germany’s preoccupation with individual liberties over society protection is understandable.

The Weimar Republic, which Adolf Hitler hijacked for his own evil ends, used police and courts to design the society it wanted – turning the justice system into a tool of dictatorship, repression and mass murder.

Modern Germany built its constitution to avoid ever again allowing courts or police to be used as instruments of tyranny, enshrining individual rights and strict limits on state power.

That is a situation the wonderful, abundantly reasonable people of Germany never want repeated.

Germany is a brilliant, modern, rich, thriving, forward-thinking democracy – with problems Britain might gladly swap its own battles for.

The people are hardworking, friendly, intelligent – but also funny and laidback in a way that smashes the clichéd image the country has sometimes carried outside its borders.

It’s well recognised here, however, that the cost of all this seems to be a propensity to forgiveness and trust in its offenders.

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Under the warm autumn sun, looking out over the lake, I’m sipping tart, refreshing apple-secco. It’s a sparkling prosecco-like aperitif, but made from apples instead of grapes. I eat a few cinnamon apple chips, then move on to the hard stuff: brandy made from heritage apple varieties.

If you hadn’t guessed, apples are big business around here. I’m on a walking trip along the shores of Lake Constance, on Germany’s southern border. About 250,000 tonnes of apples are harvested in this region each year. Our trip has coincided with the annual gourmet event, when local producers set up stalls and sell their wares along 9 miles (15km) of the SeeGang hiking trail between Überlingen, Sipplingen and Bodman-Ludwigshafen (this year it takes place on 12 October). If apples aren’t your jam, there’s also pear-secco and spirits made from everything from plums, cherries and blackcurrants to jerusalem artichokes. Hikers can also sample food such as smoked sausages, cheeses, onion tarts, and homemade cakes and pies.

Lake Constance’s tourism tagline is: “Four countries – one lake”. Germany, Austria and Switzerland all meet at the lake, while Lichtenstein is just a half-hour drive away. On our short break, my boyfriend and I stick to the German section, but those with more time could easily visit three or four countries. There is a 160-mile cycling circuit around the lake, which can be divided into four to eight stages; and week-long foodie, active and highlights itineraries, all doable using public transport. The Bodensee ticket gives unlimited travel on trains, buses and ferries (from €48 for three days), while the Bodensee Card Plus also includes entry to 160 attractions (from €78 for three days; €124 for seven).

We started our trip in Konstanz (anglicised as Constance), the biggest city on the lake. We took a guided tour to learn about the city’s long history – most notably the Council of Constance of 1414-1418, a series of meetings to resolve years of schism within the Catholic church – and visit its landmarks: the council building itself; Imperia, a controversial 9-metre (30ft) rotating waterfront statue of a voluptuous woman, believed to be a courtesan, holding a king and a pope in her hands, created in 1993 by Peter Lenk; the münster (cathedral) and its 78-metre tower with views over the city, lake and mountains; and the charming Niederburg district, with its cobbled alleyways and houses from the late Middle Ages.

While the sun was shining, we ate outside by the water at Constanzer Wirtshaus, an inn in a former officers’ mess, built for Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1899. As well as hearty meat dishes such as knuckle of pork, shredded ox and beef roulade, I was delighted to find delicious vegan versions of regional dishes. Maultaschen, usually meat-filled dumplings, were made with plant-based mince and served with a potato and cucumber salad and vegetable gravy.

When it rained, we took refuge in Brauhaus Joh Albrecht, a brewery and restaurant in a medieval building. Alongside its core menu of sausages, schnitzels and Swabian (southwest German) specialities such as käsespätzle (pasta with cheese and roasted onions), it serves seasonal dishes. The pumpkin soup with giant pretzels was proving popular; this autumn there is a chanterelle mushroom menu, pleasingly called a pfifferlingskarte in German. We tried the malty Copper beer; later in the year, the dark, strong Xmas Bock will go on sale.

After all this indulgence, it was time to walk to our campsite, nearly 19km (12 miles) around the lake. Just outside the city, we reached the inviting Bodensee-Therme baths, with indoor and outdoor pools, saunas and steam rooms. We pressed on and passed Mainau, known as the flower island. In September, the dahlias are in full bloom and the katsura trees give off scents of gingerbread and caramel; the arboretum is at its leaf-peeping peak in October; and the illuminated Christmas garden opens on 18 November.

We left the lake and headed a little way into the countryside, walking through meadows and climbing a couple of hills, before strolling through the lakeside village of Dingelsdorf to the Campingplatz Klausenhorn just beyond. The nights were getting chilly, so we were glad to be staying in a cosy sleeping barrel rather than a tent. These wooden structures are supposedly based on the accommodation at the Council of Constance – but presumably a lot warmer and cleaner. The campsite has a cafe, sells fresh bread in the mornings and hosts a market on Fridays. Ufer 39, a restaurant a short walk away, serves local dishes plus pizza and pasta, in a modern space with a vaulted ceiling.

The next morning, we took a boat from Dingelsdorf harbour across the lake to Überlingen, a town with a medieval quarter and the longest promenade on the lake. This was the start of our gourmet walk – shorter (at about 7 miles) than the previous day’s route but more challenging – traversing ravines, forests and, of course, orchards. A particularly memorable stop was at the Torkelbühl viewpoint, where the Kress Winery was serving wine and snacks to accompany the incredible lake panorama.

Beyond Sipplingen, we were starting to tire when we heard the rousing sound of an oompah band. We headed towards the music and emerged at the Höhengasthaus Haldenhof, a picture-perfect mountain inn whose sun terrace has views all the way to the Alps. Fortified by more excellent German beer, it was a short hop to our journey’s end, the Seehotel Adler in Bodman-Ludwigshafen. With a heated outdoor pool and three saunas, it was certainly a good place to relax after a hike. The restaurant serves pike and char fish alongside pork cheeks and steaks, and more excellent vegetarian options such as panzerotti (mini calzones) stuffed with porcini and truffles, with thyme butter.

We’d packed a lot in, but there was so much left to see: the island old town of Lindau; the Middle Ages castle at Meersburg; the Zeppelin city of Friedrichshafen. And that’s without even leaving Germany. We’re going to need more apple-secco …

The trip was provided by the German National Tourist Office. This year’s gourmet hiking event is on 12 October. Campingplatz Klausenhorn has sleeping barrels from €70, sleeping two adults and two children; the campsite is open until 15 October and reopens in March. The Seehotel Adler has doubles from €160 B&B

Germany says it’s possible to temporarily delay sanctions after E3’s top diplomats hold call with Iranian counterpart.

Germany says the “ball is still in Iran’s court” after the French, British and German foreign ministers held talks by phone with their Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, regarding Tehran’s nuclear programme.

Wednesday’s phone call came after the European powers last month triggered a 30-day deadline for “snapback” sanctions to come into force in the absence of a negotiated deal on the Iranian nuclear programme.

A German Federal Foreign Office spokesman told the AFP news agency on Wednesday that the offer from the so-called E3 powers “to discuss a temporary extension of the snapback if Iran fulfils certain conditions remains on the table” but added: “At this point, the steps taken by Iran have not been sufficient.”

Before the call, Tehran called for a “positive approach and goodwill” from the E3.

The E3 has been warning Tehran for weeks that United Nations sanctions could be reimposed by October when a 2015 nuclear agreement between Tehran and major powers expires.

A spokesman for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned that renewing the sanctions would have consequences.

The E3 has accused Tehran of violating provisions of the 2015 nuclear pact, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The agreement, which all three countries signed, saw Iran agree to curb its nuclear programme in exchange for a lifting of international sanctions on its economy.

A component of the nuclear deal, the “snapback” mechanism, allows sanctions to be reimposed quickly if Iran is found to be in violation of the accord.

The call, which also included European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, followed an agreement reached by Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last week on resuming cooperation between Tehran and the UN nuclear watchdog, including in principle the inspection of nuclear sites. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has backed renewed nuclear inspections.

Earlier in the week, Iran was pushing for a resolution prohibiting attacks on nuclear installations at the IAEA’s General Conference, which started on Monday in Vienna and ends on Friday.

According to Iran’s deputy nuclear chief, Behrouz Kamalvandi, who is in Vienna, the United States is putting pressure on member states to block the resolution and has “even threatened the agency that they will cut off assistance to the organisation”.

During a 12-day conflict in June, Israel and the US struck Iranian nuclear facilities, claiming Iran was getting too close to being able to produce a nuclear weapon, and IAEA inspections were interrupted over security concerns and complaints by Tehran.

Resumed cooperation between Iran and the IAEA is one of the three conditions set by European powers to hold off on completing the UN snapback mechanism, which they invoked in August.

“It is a natural expectation that Iran’s positive approach and goodwill should be reciprocated by the European side. … If some European parties start nagging this is not enough, that would mean they do not accept the IAEA,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Wednesday.

“We hope that with contacts like today’s and future ones, all parties will come to the conclusion that escalating tensions and perpetuating the current situation is not in anyone’s interest.”

Since US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the Iranian nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions, the Board of Governors of the IAEA has adopted four Western-backed censure resolutions against Iran, which maintains its nuclear programme is for peaceful civilian purposes.

Neither US intelligence nor the IAEA found earlier this year that Iran was pursuing an atomic weapon.

O’Neill was left to lament some soft defending as a defensive mix-up allowed Amiri to pounce for Germany’s second, whilst he also questioned the awarding of the free-kick which Wirtz superbly dispatched.

“For 60 or 65 minutes we were well in the game. The second goal is a bit of a freak goal, we could have defended it better. The third goal isn’t a free-kick. It’s a fantastic finish but it’s a soft free-kick,” he explained.

“I thought the referee was a bit fussy in the second half. He refereed it well in the first.

“We were well in the game and needed to get to that final 15 minutes and we might have had a final chance, but the game drifted away from us.”

Northern Ireland sit second in Group A following a win and a defeat from their opening two games.

O’Neill believes his side are where they expected to be at this stage of qualifying, with two huge home games against Slovakia and Germany to come in October.

“It’s tough to play two games away from home,” he said. “We got what we hoped for, but we’re a bit disappointed it’s not a little bit more.

“We have to be ready to play back-to-back at home and we know two good results will put us in a good position.”