Austrian scientist Claudia von Werlhof, right, has accused the USA of being behind the Haitian earthquake in January. Her boss slams the theory of the Innsbruck-based professor.

Europe needs a leader, but the only person capable of steering Europe out of the current crisis doesn't want the job - Angela Merkel, the "Slow-Motion" German Chancellor, as the US news magazine Newsweek calls her in a cover story.

Swiss voters on Sunday rejected a referendum that would have seen lawyers assigned to defend animals in court proceedings. 70 percent said 'no' to the poll.

A tabloid told visiting Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou he was in a country where, unlike his own, people "get up early and work."

The European Union's new Energy Commissioner, former Baden-Württenberg governor Günther Oettinger said Thursday financing the Nabucco natural gas pipeline project would significantly reduce Europe’s energy dependence on one supplier.

Greece must sell islands to cut its debts, two right-wing German politicians said in an interview that is bound to exacerbate tensions between Athens and Berlin.

European farmers will be able to grow fields of genetically modified potatoes in Europe for the first time after a controversial ruling by the European Commission on Tuesday.

A court has sentenced four Islamic militants for a failed plot to attack US targets in Germany. The attacks were planned to punish Germany for its role in Afghanistan.

Political parties opposing Muslim immigration are favored to gain in the run-up to early national elections in June. The local elections are taking place on Wednesday in 394 cities.

A village in eastern Germany has found a creative way to finance road repair costs: it put its many potholes up for sale. The mayor announced  the program on Wednesday. Caption: Get me tar

Porsche has introduced a low-emission hybrid "concept" sports car that is capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in just under 3.2 seconds.

Germany‘s constitutional court has rejected a law
on requiring telephone and internet providers to retain all communication data for six months.

The CeBIT 2010, the world's largest expo for ICT industry, was jointly inaugurated by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

The US is finalizing a new nuclear strategy that would include reducing its arsenals in Europe. Those weapons are believed to be stored in Germany, Italy, Belgium, Turkey and the Netherlands.

Outraged by the cover story of a German weekly news magazine that advises against the bailout of crisis-struck Greece, many Greeks are calling for a boycott of German manufactured goods.

The German state of North-Rhine Westphalia is buying a CD with data on German tax evaders in Switzerland days before the finance ministers from both countries are set to meet.

The UN has condemned as "inadmissible" Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's call for a holy war against Switzerland. Such declarations on the part of the head of state were inadmissible, it said

German lawmakers Friday approved troop reinforcements in Afghanistan which will raise the number of German soldiers to 5,350 from the present 4,500.

A DNA test on a man in Austria has proved that he is a living relative of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. The 46-year-old farmer was horrified to learn the blood of the "greatest criminal" is in his veins.

Germany launched Thursday a global campaign to promote its language which, according to official statistics, is spoken by 180 million people worldwide, though the number is shrinking.

The head of Germany's Protestant Church resigned from her post as the top-ranking Lutheran bishop on Thursday. Police had caught her driving drunk.

The German government plans to cut state-mandated incentives for rooftop solar power by 16 percent from July 1 and eliminate support for converted farmland.

Thousands of pilots working for Lufthansa and its subsidaries Germanwings and Lufthansa Cargo will resume work on Tuesday, after their union agreed to suspend a four-day strike.

Austria and Germany have launched a bitter war of words over soccer after controversial statements by the coach of the Austrian national team.

Photo: Former national team captain Andreas Ivanschitz

German Chancellor Angela Merkel plans an extended visit to the United States in April during which she will attend an international summit on nuclear non-proliferation.

The Dutch prime minister has tendered his government's resignation to Queen Beatrix after a disagreement over the country's Afghan military mission ended his ruling coalition.

Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen predicted on Saturday that Germany would be free of nuclear power by 2030, eight years later than originally planned.

Prince Frederic von Anhalt, the eccentric eighth husband of Hollywood diva Zsa Zsa Gabor, vows to make prostitution and marijuana legal in California. He has formally registered as a candidate for governor.

McDonald's Austria has become the biggest food sector player in the Alpine country and announced plans for renovations.

Munich Re is stopping business with insurance companies in Iran, making it the second major German company this year to cut ties with the country.