Eurotopics.net

In an interview with the Hungarian website Partizán, former German chancellor Angela Merkel said that she had sought to establish a new EU format for dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin before the outbreak of the Ukraine war in summer 2021, but the initiative failed due to resistance from the Baltic states and Poland. Merkel's statements have drawn criticism from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland in particular. Europe's press takes stock.

Since the terrorist attack on Israel carried out by the radical Islamic Hamas on 7 October 2023, Europe has seen a surge in antisemitic incidents, and demonstrations against Israel have become common at universities, in parliaments and on the streets. Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip is a key factor. Europe's press voices concern.

US President Donald Trump has held out the prospect of supplying Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine. He said on Monday that he had "sort of made a decision" on the matter but would want to know how Kyiv intended to use the long-range US weapons system. Putin has responded by saying that such a move would jeopardise his country's revived bilateral relations with the US.

Just one day after announcing his cabinet, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu resigned on Monday, citing the parties' unwillingness to compromise. President Macron had only appointed Lecornu on 9 September. He was the third prime minister to be appointed since the National Assembly was dissolved and new elections were held in June 2024. Commentators react with increasing bafflement.