Eurotopics.net

The hoped-for breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations failed to materialise in Brussels on the weekend. In particular a solution to the question of how to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland continued to elude the EU and UK negotiators ahead of the EU summit on Wednesday. How likely is a compromise?

A Turkish court has freed US pastor Andrew Brunson, who had been detained in Turkey for two years. The US imposed sanctions on Ankara over his over his house arrest - for alleged espionage and supporting the Kurdish Workers' Party PKK. What does Brunson's release mean for international relations and Turkey's economy?

Turkish investigators strongly suspect that missing journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered by Saudi agents. Saudi Arabia has threatened with reprisals if economic sanctions are imposed on the Kingdom. But such sanctions are vital, commentators urge, and ask why the issue of punishing Saudi Arabia has only come up now.

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church is allowed to secede from the Patriarchate in Moscow. The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople agreed on Thursday to recognise the independence of the Ukrainian Church requested by Kiev. Media in Eastern voice concern at the prospect of a schism.

The emergency escape capsule of a Soyuz rocket on its way to the International Space Station ISS was forced to return to Earth shortly after lift-off due to technical problems on Thursday. The two astronauts, one from Russia and one from the US, landed safely. Some commentators say the emergency landing fits into a series of Russian failures. Others see it as proof that Russia's space technology is superior.