Eurotopics.net

The presidents of Turkey and Russia, Erdoğan and Putin, officially opened the Turkstream gas pipeline on Wednesday. The 930-kilometer-long pipeline runs through the Black Sea and is to supply not just Turkey but also southeastern Europe with Russian natural gas. Commentators discuss why Moscow and Ankara have cause to celebrate.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited British Prime Minister Johnson in London for the first time on Wednesday. She announced that Brussels would not be able to compromise on key issues in the negotiations on the Brexit framework conditions. Commentators discuss the goals of both sides as they enter the talks - and who has the upper hand.

In a report published on Wednesday, the anti-torture Committee of the Council of Europe strongly criticises the conditions at the Ellebæk deportation centre located north of Copenhagen, concluding that Denmark is trying to induce rejected asylum seekers to return to their home country by making them live in inhumane conditions with little access to fresh air, dirty toilets and no contact with their families. The press is also outraged.

Five years after the Islamist terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo, the satirical magazine has denounced the "new face of censorship" in its editorial. Influencers are forcing their view of political correctness on the public, writes the French cartoonist Riss, who survived the attack and is now publishing director of the magazine. Journalists discuss how tolerance and freedom of expression are faring in France.

British Prince Harry and his wife Meghan announced on Instagram on Wednesday that they intend to step back from most of their royal obligations. The couple want to work in future to become financially independent, commute between North America and Great Britain and continue to perform charitable tasks, they said in an offical statement. Commentators are having a field day.

After months of wrangling the Spanish parliament elected the leader of the Socialists Pedro Sánchez as head of government by a razor-thin majority on Tuesday. He will now govern the country together with the left-wing alliance Unidas Podemos in what looks set to be a minority government. Europe's press discusses whether this means a return to normality or the start of real trouble.