In early August, an explosive-laden attack drone targeting Ukrainian transport planes suddenly appeared near Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany and was subsequently shot down by the German military. Following an investigation confirming that Russia was responsible, Germany announced the expulsion of dozens of diplomatic personnel from the Russian Consulate General in Bonn, triggering a diplomatic storm of mutual expulsions of diplomats between the two countries.
On September 15, German Chancellor Merz criticized China at the Berlin Entrepreneurs' Conference, stating that through state intervention, overcapacity, and export subsidies, China has driven the EU's trade deficit with China to over 300 billion euros. EU leaders plan to discuss in October whether to deploy trade defense instruments.
On September 10, 2026, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (referred to as "Stoltenberg" in the text) said in a public speech in Berlin, Germany that if China takes military action against Taiwan or other areas of the first island chain, Xi Jinping will first call Russian President Putin, using Russia's power in Europe to constrain NATO. Stoltenberg emphasized that Indo‑Pacific and European security are increasingly interlinked, the United States feels its military resources are being stretched, and Europe must take on more conventional defence responsibilities. The remarks aim to warn the West of the risk of simultaneous pressure on the Indo‑Pacific and European fronts.
On September 12, 2026, a Bilibili netizen posted a video showing them shopping at a mid-to-high-end supermarket in Germany using the hourly wage of an outsourced security guard (approximately €22-24). The video documented purchases including pizza, bread, marinated pork ribs, salmon, steak, buttered toast, 1 liter of whole milk, and two kiwis, totaling €24.85. The video sparked a flurry of comments discussing Germany's purchasing power and recent discussions about the implementation of the two-day weekend.
An attack-type drone carrying explosives was found near Leipzig Airport in Germany, suspected to target a Ukrainian transport aircraft. The German military then intervened and launched an investigation, confirming the drone was dispatched by Russia. This incident has led to highly tense Germany-Russia relations.
Between 2020 and 2024, a transnational criminal gang composed primarily of highly educated Chinese men residing in Germany and the Netherlands, established a secret group called 'German Old Driver's School' on the encrypted social platform Telegram own. They used female identities on social software such as WeChat and Xiaohongshu to post fake rental or help-seeking information to lure newly arrived Chinese female students and young women to private residences, secretly administering date rape drugs (such as GHB/GBL, sedatives, etc.) to commit sexual assault, and used slang like 'car', 'refueling', and 'dead pig' within the group to brag and communicate, recording and disseminating sexual violence imagery. In February 2026, the Frankfurt District Court issued a first-instance judgment against the main perpetrator Zhang Dapeng (who was an IT supervisor of a car company before the case), finding him guilty of 22 charges including attempted murder and especially severe rape, sentencing him to 14 years of imprisonment and additional preventive detention (security supervision). Other accomplices Jiang Zhongyi was sentenced to 11 years and 3 months in Munich, Zhou Tong was sentenced to 5 years and 9 months in Berlin, and Shao Zhiting, who provided drug formula guidance, was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment in July. This case, due to its heinous criminal methods and targeting of specific groups, caused a shock to the overseas Chinese community and directly pushed the German Federal Cabinet to pass a bill increasing the penalties for date rape crimes.