Eurotopics.net

The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games will begin with an opening ceremony at 8 pm local time on Friday evening, however the stands will remain almost empty due to strict coronavirus protocols. Most of the state representatives sitting in the VIP box will be from authoritarian countries - with Putin as the most prominent guest. Europe's press discusses to what extent these Games mark a turning point.

Deutsche Welle (DW) has been banned from broadcasting in Russia. Its offices in the country are also to be closed and accreditations withdrawn. The ban is widely seen as a countermeasure after Germany's Commission on Licensing and Supervision (ZAK) of media institutions said this week that the Russian television station RT DE could no longer broadcast in Germany using a Serbian broadcasting licence.

Prague and Warsaw have reached an agreement in their dispute over the Polish Turów coal mine located in the border triangle of Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland. The ECJ had already decided in favour of the Czech Republic, ruling that Turów was causing environmental damage. The mine will now be allowed to continue to operate under certain conditions. Poland will pay compensation and the Czech Republic will withdraw its complaint.

Law enforcement authorities in Greece have dropped investigations against the last two out of ten politicians suspected of illegal practices in connection with the Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis. Last month, journalists Kostas Vaxevanis and Ioanna Papadakou, who uncovered the scandal, were accused of involvement and summoned before a special investigator. The national press reflects the diametrically opposed perspectives on the case.