Scholz's government

Columns of tractors rolled into Berlin yesterday as farmers gathered for the climax of a week of demonstrations against a plan to scrap tax breaks on the diesel they use, a protest that has tapped into wider discontent with Germany's government.

Germany has delivered promised Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday, providing Kiev with much-needed heavy weaponry against Russia.

"Yes, we delivered Leopard tanks as we announced," Scholz told a press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Rotterdam when asked to confirm a report in news outlet Spiegel.

Olaf Scholz became Germany's ninth post-World War II chancellor on Dec. 8, opening a new era for the European Union's most populous nation and largest economy after Angela Merkel's 16-year tenure.