There is a common interest in NATO to address security issues in the Arctic region, Wadephul said. The alliance is currently developing concrete proposals for this. “The willingness to discuss these questions within the NATO framework is of course universally available, and Germany will also try to make a contribution to this,” emphasized the Foreign Minister. Wadephul also welcomed planned talks between the Danish and US governments this week. He has “no doubt at all that this will happen in a friendly and cooperative environment.”
Other topics in the conversation with Rubio included Iran, Ukraine and the situation in Venezuela. Wadephul then wanted to meet with UN Secretary-General António Guterres in New York.
US President Donald Trump has announced punitive tariffs against all of Iran’s trading partners in light of the Iranian security forces’ violent crackdown on mass protests in the country. “Effective immediately, any country that does business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a 25 percent tariff on all business with the United States of America,” Trump wrote on his online service Truth Social on Monday.
According to the human rights organization Iran Human Rights (IHR), at least 648 demonstrators have been killed since the protests began in Iran two weeks ago, while other estimates put the number at more than 6,000 dead.
During a visit to Washington, Federal Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) expressed clear criticism of the US military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. It is important “that we make it clear that international law has been broken here,” said the Vice Chancellor on Monday in ZDF’s “heute journal”. He “also formulated this criticism in the USA and will continue to do so.”
At his meeting with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Klingbeil said he also spoke about the situation in Greenland. He “made it very clear: the future of Greenland is decided by the people who live in Greenland. Denmark decides on that, and we as international partners should recognize the sovereignty and integrity of states, and I expect the same from the American side.”
US Senator Mark Kelly is suing the Pentagon and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the consequences of a video in which he called on US military personnel not to follow illegal orders. Kelly is a retired naval officer. After the video, the Defense Ministry initiated proceedings that could lead to a cap on his retirement benefits.
