Eurotopics.net

Since last week the amount of gas flowing to Western Europe through the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline has dwindled significantly - due to technical problems, the Kremlin claims. To reduce their dependence on Russian gas, several countries are increasingly turning to environmentally harmful alternatives such as coal-fired plants. Europe's press follows the developments with a critical eye.

In the UK, around 40,000 railway workers have gone on strike this Tuesday for higher wages and against job cuts. This is the country's biggest walkout in 30 years and is expected to paralyse large sections of the national rail network. With the prospect of other public sector employees joining the strike, fears of a "summer of discontent" are growing.

Spain's largest fishing company Nueva Pescanova has announced plans to breed octopus for commercial consumption starting next year. Animal welfare organisations are incensed, arguing that the cephalopod's intelligence makes this "unethical and questionable". Commentators in Greece, where octopus is a standard ingredient of the national cuisine, take different views on the consumption of this complex sea creature.

The dust is settling after the second round of France's parliamentary elections. President Macron's alliance remains the strongest party but has lost its absolute majority. The strongest opposition camp is the left-wing alliance Nupes led by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, while Marine Le Pen's extreme right-wing Rassemblement National party will become the third strongest parliamentary group. Commentators see far-reaching consequences for France and Europe.

After years of legal wrangling, British Home Secretary Priti Patel signed an extradition order for Wikileaks founder Julian Assange to be sent to the United States last week. Assange now has 14 days to lodge an appeal. Nothing less than freedom of the press is at stake here, commentators stress.