内容摘要：The grim procedure of winding down the business took over as passwords and laptops were collected while servers were backed up in case "some future incarnation of the business can be preserved".

The grim procedure of winding down the business took over as passwords and laptops were collected while servers were backed up in case "some future incarnation of the business can be preserved".

Both South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky found themselves in awkward, tense or even fiery exchanges as the world's cameras rolled, capturing every moment. Those moments have turned once cosy, diplomatic moments in the Oval Office into potentially fraught, tight-rope walks for visiting leaders.Ahead of the visit, Berlin expressed confidence that the German side is ready. "I think he's well prepared for this meeting," Friedrich Merz's spokesman told reporters this week.

Merz - from the centre-right CDU party - is not just prepared, but on friendly terms with the US President, according to German media.The pair are even said to have exchanged text messages and be on a first name basis, Germany's ARD news outlet has reported.It's always important to not talk for too long," Merz recently opined on German TV. "But to keep it short and also let him talk."

Merz's forthright, "shoot-from-the-hip" style of politics could add an interesting dimension to the meeting. His remarks can be surprising and make headlines - a stark contrast to those of his more cautious predecessors, Olaf Scholz and Angela Merkel.Though a traditional supporter of transatlantic relations, Merz raised eyebrows in February by declaring the current US administration is "indifferent to the fate of Europe".

So far, the White House has been uncharacteristically quiet about Merz's visit.

It was only briefly mentioned by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt in a gaggle with reporters on Monday, and not at all during briefings at the White House and State Department on Tuesday.The corporation behind Oreo has filed a lawsuit in the US against the budget supermarket Aldi, accusing it of "blatantly" copying the packaging of its famous snacks.

Court documents showed that Mondelēz International said Aldi uses similar packaging likely to "deceive" consumers and "ride the coattails" of the company's "attraction, fame and prestige".The snack giant also is behind Wheat Thins, Nutter Butter, Chips Ahoy!, and Ritz - all products the company accuses Aldi of copying with its "discount" versions.

Aldi US didn't respond to the BBC's request for comment, but its British counterpart stressed that it is not involved in the lawsuit.A spokesperson for Aldi UK told the BBC, that they are "under the same ownership but operate as completely separate businesses".