Without the funding, Greece will go bust later this month forcing the recession-ravaged and highly indebted country out of the EU’s single currency. Greece’s borders with Turkey is the EU’s frontline against illegal immigration and European measures to stop extremists travelling to and from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) bases in Syria and Iraq.

Panos Kammenos, the Greek defence minister, warned that if the eurozone allowed Greece to go bust it would give EU travel papers to illegal immigrants crossing its borders or the 10,000 currently held in detention centres. "If they deal a blow to Greece, then they should know the the migrants will get papers to go to Berlin,” he said.

"If Europe leaves us in the crisis, we will flood it with migrants, and it will be even worse for Berlin if in that wave of millions of economic migrants there will be some jihadists of the Islamic State too.” Mr Kammenos, who is the leader of the Right-wing Independent Greeks party which is in coalition with Greece’s ruling far-Left Syriza government, said that the EU’s passport free “Schengen” travel zone left the eurozone vulnerable.

The boost in German-Iran trade – and a late-February pro-Iran business event sponsored by the Hannover chamber of industry and commerce – triggered a public rebuke from Israel. “Obviously the organizing body aims to enhance trade relations with Iran, but now is not the time for such initiatives – both because of the fact that the international sanctions are still in place and because of the sensitive stage of the current negotiations between the E3+3 [China, France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States] and Iran,” a spokeswoman for Israel’s embassy told The Jerusalem Post.

“In addition one should not forget that Iran was and remains a country which supports, finances and executes murderous terrorism around the globe, including its military support of the Syrian regime and Hezbollah,” she added. “Iran is a country where human rights are trampled and where currently an International Holocaust Cartoon competition is held, and provides an opportunity for Holocaust deniers to present their vicious and outrageous ‘art,’ distorting the memory of one of the most tragic events in human history,” she continued.

For months, Breedlove has been commenting on Russian activities in eastern Ukraine, speaking of troop advances on the border, the amassing of munitions and alleged columns of Russian tanks. Over and over again, Breedlove's numbers have been significantly higher than those in the possession of America's NATO allies in Europe. As such, he is playing directly into the hands of the hardliners in the US Congress and in NATO.

The German government is alarmed. Are the Americans trying to thwart European efforts at mediation led by Chancellor Angela Merkel? Sources in the Chancellery have referred to Breedlove's comments as "dangerous propaganda." Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier even found it necessary recently to bring up Breedlove's comments with NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg.

But Breedlove hasn't been the only source of friction. Europeans have also begun to see others as hindrances in their search for a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine conflict. First and foremost among them is Victoria Nuland, head of European affairs at the US State Department. She and others would like to see Washington deliver arms to Ukraine and are supported by Congressional Republicans as well as many powerful Democrats.

Indeed, US President Barack Obama seems almost isolated. He has thrown his support behind Merkel's diplomatic efforts for the time being, but he has also done little to quiet those who would seek to increase tensions with Russia and deliver weapons to Ukraine. Sources in Washington say that Breedlove's bellicose comments are first cleared with the White House and the Pentagon. The general, they say, has the role of the "super hawk," whose role is that of increasing the pressure on America's more reserved trans-Atlantic partners.

The Bank of International Settlements calculates the public sector debt of the G7 countries has grown by 40 percentage points to 120 percent of GDP since the crisis began. Consultants McKinsey found that not one developed economy (and only five emerging markets) have managed to reduce their debt to GDP ratios in the “real economy”, which includes both household and government debt. When taken together, total debt has grown by $57 trillion since 2007, far outpacing global growth.

The explosion in public debt levels has come about as countries have been unable to "inflate away" their liabilities - a high rate of inflation helps to erode debt piles over time in real terms. Instead, a global deflationary spiral has increased the amount of money countries owe and the interest they pay to service these debts.

China's debt has quadrupled since 2007, rising to $28 trillion from just $7 trillion before the crisis. At 282 percent of its economic output, China’s debt as a share of economic output is now larger than the United States, and is only surpassed by Japan. With the global indebtedness reaching its highest level in 200 years, the IMF has warned the world will need defaults, a savings tax and higher inflation to finally clear the way for recovery.

"Growth in Saudi Arabia has been dramatic and, based on previous orders, these numbers are not going to slow down” said Benny Moores, a senior analyst for IHS Aerospace, Defense and Security. According to broader figures in the report however, Saudi Arabia is not alone in its escalation of arms purchases. The Middle East as a region has become the largest destination for American firepower.

“When we look at the likely export addressable opportunities at a global level for the defense industry, five of the 10 leading countries are from the Middle East,” Moores said. “The Middle East is the biggest regional market and there are $110 billion in opportunities in the coming decade."

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union party backs the plan of Gabriel, leader of the Social Democrats, to address human rights in the talks but are worried about “letting down reliable partners” over the tank sale, CDU lawmaker Joachim Pfeiffer said in an interview late Friday in Riyadh. Gabriel told reporters in Riyadh on Sunday that Merkel opposes selling the Leopard to Saudi Arabia and that German parliamentarians must defer to her.

Pressure on Germany to rethink its stance on selling the Leopards will probably grow as tensions in the Persian Gulf persist with the Islamic State threat and as Merkel seeks to underpin the stability of the Saudi kingdom. Islamic State leaders can’t be beaten by “appealing to morals,” CDU parliamentary caucus leader Volker Kauder said in a March 7 interview in Leipziger Volkszeitung newspaper, calling on Merkel to reconsider military policy to Saudi Arabia.

Reports have said the Iranians were attempting to develop cruise missiles, but this is the first time they have unveiled such weapons publicly. Iranian websites that reported the introduction presented photographs of a display of a number of static Soumars and a short video of a launch of one of them from a military vehicle.

In 2005 senior officials in Kiev confirmed that Ukraine in 2001 had sold a dozen Kh-55 missiles to Iran. Ukraine held the missiles after the Soviet Union disintegrated. Since the missiles were delivered, the Iranians have been trying to reverse-engineer the Kh-55 to produce a local version.

“The unveiling of the cruise missile is very surprising,” says Tal Inbar, head of the space and unmanned-aerial-vehicle center at the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies in Herzliya. Inbar says that “it’s much easier to hide a cruise missile. They are smaller and more mobile [and] you can launch them from a variety of platforms on land, from submarines, bombers and even disguised merchant ships.”

It means that China is literally advertising its currency overseas, and it’s making sure that everyone landing at one of the world’s busiest airports sees it. They know that the future belongs to them and they’re flaunting it. And most everyone has assumed that Chinese currency would soon play a larger role in international trade.

But things have moved so rapidly in recent years that now a very large chunk of the financial world actually expects the renminbi to replace the dollar as the primary reserve currency of the planet someday. The following comes from CNBC… ‘The tightly controlled Chinese yuan will eventually supersede the dollar as the top international reserve currency, according to a new poll of institutional investors.

‘The survey of 200 institutional investors – 100 headquartered in mainland China and 100 outside of it – published by State Street and the Economist Intelligence Unit on Thursday found 53 percent of investors think the renminbi will surpass the US dollar as the world’s major reserve currency. Optimism was higher within China, where 62 percent said they saw a redback world on the horizon, compared with 43 percent outside China.’

Black radish extract

Recently spotted on the Radio 4 Food Programme in the ingredients listing on a supermarket Bakewell tart, it acts as an antioxidant by slowing down the staling in the tart that would naturally occur through exposure to air. Effectively, it acts as a preservative, extending the tart’s shelf life. But as it is classed as an ingredient, not an additive, there is no need for an E number.

Tapioca starch

Most savvy consumers don’t like the sound of polyphosphates, chemicals added to cheap meat products (sausages, cooked ham, frankfurters), to help the meat absorb and retain added water. Clean label tapioca starch does the same job, but sounds a whole lot nicer than sodium/potassium/calcium/ or ammonium tetrapolyphosphate, E452.

Carrot concentrate

Don’t imagine that this is something you’d drink on a yoga retreat. Actually, it’s a factory-made, highly-processed substance that won’t be contributing to your five-a-day. It is used as a “clean label” yellow colouring, but neither the word “colour” nor “colouring” need appear on the label. It makes margarines and spread look yellow, like butter; without colouring, they would look grey. Carrot concentrate is sometimes labelled as “mixed carotenes”, which sound as health-enhancing as a wheatgrass shot. Beetroot extract and paprika extract are “clean label” red colourings. Safflower extract produces a cool cappuccino hue.

Roasted barley malt extract

This ingredient, which you’ll often find in breakfast cereals and granary breads, has an aura of health around it. Its true role, however, is as a “clean label” flavour enhancer and colouring, all rolled into one. Added in liquid or powdered form, it brings to the table a slightly sweet, toasted cereal flavour, and an appetising golden-brown tone.

Cultured corn syrup

This “clean label” preservative turns up in “fresh” dips, and other chilled products. It is made by fermenting corn - often genetically modified - with cultures that form organic acids and fermentation products with a bacteria-inhibiting effect. The boon here for the manufacturer is that it counts as an ingredient, not an additive, so it doesn’t need an E number. And the “cultured” bit sounds positively classy.

Rosemary extract

When you see this in your “fresh” potato gnocchi or rustic salami, you’re not looking at a herby aromatic essence, patiently handmade by artisans in Tuscany. In fact, by the time it emerges from its complex extraction process, this brown liquid or powder has no scent or smell of the fresh herb. It is there as an antioxidant (effectively a preservative), to extend the product’s shelf life.

Rice extract

Found in products as diverse as ice cream, savoury snacks, and pizzas, it does the same job as the old guard chemical emulsifiers and stabilisers, such as mono- and diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono-and diglycerides of fatty acids (E472e), and methylcellulose (E461), minus the E numbers. Used as a “dough conditioner” in industrial bakeries to improve water retention and extend the freezer life of baked goods, it also turns up a lot in low-fat foods, to make up for the disagreeable loss of “mouth feel” when fat is removed.

Caramelised sugar syrup

The name evokes images of home-made crème caramel, but this dual purpose ingredient doubles up as a sweet flavouring and brown colouring. It acts as a “clean label” replacement for E150 caramel, which is controversial on health grounds. It adds a golden-baked "brown" taste and appearance to breads that contain little wholemeal flour, gives pre-cooked beige chicken a naturally roasted look, and flavours toffee popcorn and confectionery. Is it really more natural than E150? We just don’t know, because the precise formulation is a trade secret.

The official's forecast comes amid increasing disagreement within the 28-nation bloc. Raskovic Ivic projected current differences of opinion in the European Union will lead to further division lines. "One alliance is going to be around Germany, the Baltic countries, maybe central European countries plus Croatia and Slovenia. The other alliance is going to be around France and it might take Mediterranean countries.

And the third is going to be Great Britain that will go with the United States," the Serbian official told Sputnik.

German power is now mostly seen in economic terms. Given its 20th century past, the dream of simply being a bigger Switzerland still holds a strong appeal to the German public: a country without any serious external security concerns, focused on prosperity and wellbeing.

And yet recently Angela Merkel has put her country on a new course. She is redefining German power. This is not happening via grand speeches, but through concrete steps and sometimes discreet messages. And it is happening as a result of circumstances, not because of a comprehensively pre-prepared plan. Last year, in quick succession, war broke out in Ukraine, populist and extremist parties made strong gains in European elections, and the Greek conundrum returned to the eurozone. Because of all these crises, Merkel has been reappraising what her country should be doing as Europe’s powerhouse.

But the bottom line is that Germany is no longer the country that has frequently been portrayed: a nation so obsessed with export markets and globalisation that it might be a more suitable fit for the Brics club of emerging global economies, somehow turning its back on Europe. One sign of the shift is that the German government has recently indicated it is thinking of increasing its defence budget by 2017.

Checkpoint Charlie, the old border crossing between East and West Berlin, was once a symbol for Europe’s division, and hence Germany’s constraints. Visit now, and you see only a tourist site. Sitting in a nearby restaurant, Joschka Fischer, the former foreign minister, tells me that in spite of her many flaws, the chancellor is indeed carving out a new sense of German responsibility for Europe’s internal and external affairs.

Whether that will be palatable to an inward-looking German public is another question that Merkel will continue to grapple with. “This is a new role for Germany,” Fischer says, “and the country is not yet accustomed to it.”

A European army, according to the EC president, could "react credibly" to dangers facing the 28-member bloc or its neighbors. Juncker added that forming the European armed forces would signal to Russia the hitherto political and economic union is "serious about upholding the values of the European Union." Welt am Sonntag reports the EC head's proposal has found support in the German legislature, with chairman of its foreign affairs committee noting that time has come for the vision to materialize.

"The Europeans spend enormous sums of money for the military combined, much more than Russia. But our military capabilities remain an insufficient security policy as long as we maintain small national armies, which make and buy many parts of the same thing on a smaller scale," Norbert Rottgen was quoted as saying.

It was quiet in eastern Ukraine last Wednesday. Indeed, it was another quiet day in an extended stretch of relative calm. The battles between the Ukrainian army and the pro-Russian separatists had largely stopped and heavy weaponry was being withdrawn. The Minsk cease-fire wasn't holding perfectly, but it was holding.

On that same day, General Philip Breedlove, the top NATO commander in Europe, stepped before the press in Washington. Putin, the 59-year-old said, had once again "upped the ante" in eastern Ukraine - with "well over a thousand combat vehicles, Russian combat forces, some of their most sophisticated air defense, battalions of artillery" having been sent to the Donbass. "What is clear," Breedlove said, "is that right now, it is not getting better. It is getting worse every day."

German leaders in Berlin were stunned. They didn't understand what Breedlove was talking about. And it wasn't the first time. Once again, the German government, supported by intelligence gathered by the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND), Germany's foreign intelligence agency, did not share the view of NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR).

The Israel Hayom daily on Thursday reported that the supreme leader was rushed to the hospital and has undergone surgery, citing “Arab media reports.” He is said to be in a serious condition. The reports could not be immediately confirmed.

French paper Le Figaro cited Western intelligence over the weekend that the 76-year-old was suffering from stage four prostate cancer that had spread to other parts of his body, with doctors assessing he has, at most, two years to live. Khamenei has been rumored to be ill for years. In September of last year, he underwent prostate surgery, with his official Twitter account maintaining that it was successful.

Parallel to Germany's efforts, Great Britain and France have also been intensifying their military policy relationships with Japan. The same goes for NATO, which, just last year signed an "Individual Partnership and Cooperation Programme" with the Japanese government. Already two years ago, German government advisors had recommended that Germany "participate in the USA's political and military re-orientation toward Asia."

This would mean the reinforcement of western positions in the direct territorial vicinity of the Peoples' Republic of China, with the intention of rolling back its political power. Berlin and the EU also see Japan, the USA's key ally in Asia, as an important partner in their rivalry with Beijing.