Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico surprised both friends and foes with a visit to Moscow shortly before Christmas. His country is in a predicament because Ukraine is refusing to extend a deal allowing the transit of Russian gas via its territory to Slovakia for 2025. Following his visit to Putin, Fico said he would cut off Slovakian power supplies to Ukraine if it continued to refuse transit. He also offered his country as a venue for peace negotiations with Ukraine to Putin.

In its defensive war against the Russian invasion, Ukraine suffered a number of setbacks in 2024. Neither the Kursk offensive that began in August nor the long-awaited permission to use imported weapons to attack military targets in Russia have brought the breakthrough Kyiv had hoped for. The world is now nervously waiting to see whether Trump, as the future US president, can force the parties to negotiate - and what such negotiations might lead to.

Elon Musk, who has been appointed by President-elect Donald Trump to lead the future Department of Government Efficiency, is already exerting his influence: on his initiative Trump called on Republicans in Congress to vote against a budget compromise with the Democrats. A government shutdown was only narrowly averted. Commentators voice concern - also because Musk is increasingly active in Europe too.

The transit contract that regulates the supply of Russian natural gas through Ukraine expires on 1 January. Russia's state-owned company Gazprom uses this route to supply pro-Russian Transnistria with energy free of charge - but also to deliver gas to a large power plant in Tiraspol which then sells electricity in the Republic of Moldova. Both parts of the country have now declared a state of emergency.

On Monday the majority of the members of the German parliament withdrew its confidence in Chancellor Olaf Scholz, officially clearing the way for new elections on 23 February. Scholz will be running again as the top candidate of the SPD, but the leader of the opposition Friedrich Merz (CDU) is ahead in the polls. Europe's press takes stock.