Overview
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz is meeting Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in northern Norway, with stops at Andenes and Bardufoss to advance cooperation on energy security, defense and space as allied diplomacy remains in focus.
- Norway’s ‘Cold Response’ exercise runs March 9–19 with about 25,000 troops from 14 nations, including roughly 1,200 German soldiers, to demonstrate readiness, strengthen ties and reinforce credible deterrence in the High North.
- Norway now supplies 16.6% of Germany’s crude oil after deliveries nearly doubled in five years, and Andoya’s spaceport hosts Germany’s Isar Aerospace program, which is targeting a follow‑up Spectrum test flight around March 19.
- Schalke enter the season’s run‑in as leaders with coach Miron Muslic confirming Edin Dzeko, Loris Karius and Nikola Katic are fit for Sunday’s Hannover match, while rivals stumbled as Darmstadt drew 1:1 at Magdeburg and Elversberg lost 0:2 in Fürth.
- In Baden‑Württemberg, the CDU is debating options including a minority government after a campaign‑trail rupture with the Greens, with constitutional rules requiring an absolute majority for electing a minister‑president and setting August deadlines.