Eurotopics.net

Last week Spain's parliament strengthened the country's sex crimes legislation: under the new "only yes means yes" law all parties must explicitly consent to sexual acts. In addition, sexual assault will count as rape even if the victim doesn't fight back. With the new laws Spain's Equality Minister Irene Montero hopes to bring about a change in the country's sexual culture. Not all commentators welcome the step.

After last week's diplomatic éclat, the territorial conflict between Greece and Turkey has flared up again. Ankara's Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has called on Athens to demilitarise its islands in the Aegean Sea including Rhodes, Kos, Lesbos and Samos, citing reference the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Paris Treaty. Athens has appealed to the United Nations. The Greek press sounds the alarm.

Against the backdrop of new, intensified Russian attacks in eastern Ukraine, Europe is at odds over whether and how to end the war. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke on the phone with Russia's President Putin on Saturday in an attempt to persuade him to agree to a ceasefire. Prior to that, proposals put forward by former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had caused a stir. The press is divided.