An Italian court has approved the extradition of a Ukrainian man suspected of taking part in the 2022 explosions that damaged the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, his lawyer confirmed Wednesday.

The decision clears the way for German prosecutors to question the suspect directly in connection with the sabotage, which severed a key link for Russian gas supplies to Europe.

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Business sentiment in Germany improved in October, driven by more optimistic expectations for the months ahead, according to data released by the Munich-based Ifo Institute.

The Ifo Business Climate Index rose from 87.7 points in September to 88.4 points, though companies rated their current situation slightly worse than the previous month.

In manufacturing, confidence increased mainly due to brighter expectations. The institute said the decline in new orders had come to a halt, and capacity utilization rose slightly, though it remained well below the long-term average. Firms were less satisfied with their ongoing business than in September.

The Ifo said mood in the services sector improved “significantly,” with providers expressing less skepticism about the near future and slightly better assessments of current conditions. Tourism and IT services contributed most to the upswing.

Germany’s domestic intelligence chief Sinan Selen has described espionage and sabotage as among the biggest current threats facing the country, according to remarks published by the German news agency DPA.

Selen said the security situation had shifted and intensified over the past decade, requiring greater focus and prioritization by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV).

The Cologne-based agency, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary on Monday with a ceremony at Germany’s Interior Ministry in Berlin.

Selen said the agency’s main concerns included multipolar threats, espionage, sabotage, cyberattacks, international terrorism, and violent extremism. Early identification of networks, activities, and key figures behind them would be essential, he noted.

Founded in 1950 amid Cold War tensions, the BfV was established to safeguard Germany’s democratic order and was deliberately barred from police powers due to historical concerns. The agency continues to cooperate with police through joint counterterrorism and extremism centers in Berlin.

Reflecting on past failures, Selen acknowledged that the agency’s history included controversies such as the 2011 destruction of files related to the neo-Nazi NSU murders, which led to the resignation of then-President Heinz Fromm.

He also addressed the agency’s current monitoring of political parties, noting that while tensions with the socialist Left Party persisted, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) faced the most scrutiny. The BfV had classified the AfD in May as a “confirmed right-wing extremist organization,” but suspended the designation pending a court decision after the party filed a legal challenge.

A new report has found that life satisfaction in eastern Germany has been rising more quickly than in the west, while Hamburg residents were identified as the happiest overall.

According to the SKL Happiness Atlas, published Monday in Berlin, overall life satisfaction in Germany has stabilized at a high level. The report said the national happiness score had risen by 0.03 points from the previous year to 7.09 on a scale from zero to ten, returning to its pre-pandemic level.

The report explained that the increase was mainly driven by eastern Germany, which gained 0.12 points compared with the previous year, while western Germany saw only a small rise of 0.02 points. The authors said the “happiness gap” between east and west had therefore narrowed to a level similar to that of the late 2010s.

The study found regional variations as well. Hamburg ranked first again with a score of 7.33, followed by Bavaria and Rhineland-Palatinate at 7.21 each, and North Rhine-Westphalia at 7.10. Schleswig-Holstein, which had topped the ranking for years, dropped to fifth place with 7.12. Bremen, Berlin, and Saarland remained at the bottom, while Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania ranked last with 6.06 points.

The report said happiness had risen most among people aged 16 to 25, who were now more satisfied than before the pandemic. By contrast, life satisfaction among those aged 61 to 74 had declined, with inflation and growing loneliness cited as key factors.

Guten Tag from DW’s newsroom in rainy Bonn and Danke Schön for joining us.

A new study shows life satisfaction in eastern Germany has been growing faster than in the west, with Hamburg topping the national happiness rankings.

At closer inspection, though, things were more complicated. Hamburg, once part of West Germany, ranked highest, while the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania came last.

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