After US Secretary of State Marco Rubio lashed out at Nato, US President Donald Trump has now threatened to pull the US out of the defence alliance altogether. In an interview on Wednesday he said that he was seriously considering withdrawal after the war with Iran ends. His comments were prompted by the refusal of several EU countries to assist the US in attacking Iran. How seriously should Europe take this threat?
The CEO of German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall, Armin Papperger, has provoked outrage with comments about Ukrainian drone production. He described it as crude technology being put together by 'housewives' in kitchens. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by saying the remarks were bizarre.
As a four-time world champion, Italy has prided itself on being a football nation for generations. But its defeat against Bosnia and Herzegovina means that the Squadra Azzurra has failed to qualify for the World Cup for the third time in a row. A glance at the national press reveals the extent of the heartbreak.
The number of baptisms among adults and young people in France has doubled since 2023, and more than 21,000 people are due to be baptised during the upcoming Easter Vigil. Other countries such as Belgium are also seeing an increase in this rite of initiation into the Church. With Easter celebrations beginning tomorrow, commentators reflect on the fundamental significance of faith, religion and spirituality.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has slammed Spain's government for refusing to allow the US to use its airspace for the Iran war. In an interview he said that Nato could not be "a one-way street" and announced that the alliance would have to be re-examined. Italy also recently denied US fighter jets the right to land in Sicily. Europe's press sees the alliance in grave danger.
According to a leaked audio recording published by investigative media, Hungarian Foreign Affairs Minister Péter Szijjártó promised his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, that he would do his utmost to have the sister of a Russian oligarch removed from the EU sanctions list. He also reportedly promised Russian Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin that he would work towards having the sanctions against the Russian shadow fleet lifted.
The Israeli parliament has voted to introduce the death penalty for terrorists. Of 120 members, 62 voted in favour of the legislation initiated by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party. The law applies to deadly attacks deemed acts of terrorism by military courts in the occupied territories – meaning that in practice it applies only to Palestinians. Europe's press is alarmed.
Local elections in ten small Serbian municipalities on Sunday were marred by widespread obstructions and outbreaks of violence. Commentators see this as an indication of just how much President Aleksandar Vučić fears losing power and how strong the protest movement that emerged eighteen months ago still is.
More than 20 Czech editors-in-chief have called on Prime Minister Andrej Babiš and other politicians to respect free, independent and critical journalism. Their appeal comes in response to a social media post by the Prime Minister over the weekend in which he had attacked news outlets Seznam Zprávy and Novinky.cz and the daily newspaper Právo.
In recent days, facilities in the Russian Baltic ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga came under renewed attack and were set on fire by Ukrainian drones. Several drones crashed inside Finnish territory. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo suggested that Russia’s capabilities for “electronic jamming” were causing Ukrainian drones to veer off course, describing this as a “serious matter”.
One month after the US-Israeli attack on Iran and still no peace in sight. Pakistan's government may have announced that it is ready to host talks between Washington and Tehran. Yet media reports say that the US is preparing to send in ground troops. In a further twist, the Houthis in Yemen have also declared war and fired rockets at Israel.