DW Berlin Briefing - Inside German politics

Headlines coming out of the US shook the world in the first week of 2026: the military operation in Venezuela and Trump's talk of seizing Greenland. DW Berlin Briefing host Nina Haase and her guests, Michaela Küfner (DW) and Thorsten Benner (Global Public Policy Institute) discuss whether Germany's relative silence is strategic restraint or helplessness in the face of US assertiveness.

2025 was the most successful year yet for Germany's AfD, or Alternative for Germany. It came second in national elections and recently topped some opinion polls. Now in 2026, the party could win power in state elections for the first time. In this Berlin Briefing, Richard Walker and Matthew Moore analyze what could be another year of breakthroughs with Kate Brady of the Washington Post.

2025 exposed Germany's dependence on China, as a source of rare earths and a market and production site for its industry. Berlin says it wants to "de-risk" the relationship. But is it serious? Or is it in too deep? Richard Walker sat down with experts Noah Barkin and Clifford Coonan to analyze Germany's options.

Germany’s chancellor demanded a breakthrough. The EU summit delivered mixed results: Ukraine funding secured, Mercosur delayed. Is Friedrich Merz cementing Germany’s leadership—or exposing Europe to unnecessary risks? Berlin Briefing host Nina Haase, DW Chief Political Editor Michaela Küfner and Daniel Goffart (WirtschaftsWoche) unpack the stakes, the style, and what this means for 2026.

Could it really happen? Why you shouldn’t hold your breath for a quick ceasefire in Ukraine: In this episode of Berlin Briefing, host Michaela Küfner discusses the current flurry of diplomacy between Washington, Berlin, Kyiv, and Moscow over Trump’s revised plan for Ukraine, and what the new US security strategy means for Europeans and the future of the transatlantic partnership.