European Union

A new law banning children under the age of 16 from using social media comes into force in Australia today. Platform operators are required to ensure that children in this age group can no longer create an account. Commentators in Europe discuss whether the ban makes sense and can be effective.

Just over two months after the Czech parliamentary elections, the winner, multi-billionaire Andrej Babiš, has been appointed prime minister by President Petr Pavel. What this means for the country's foreign policy and the EU is a hot topic among commentators.

At a meeting in London on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed how to proceed on the war in Ukraine. The 28-point peace plan presented by the US was shortened to exclude positions that were 'anti-Ukrainian' (Zelensky) and now comprises 20 points. Once the details have been ironed out, the plan will be sent to Washington.

On Friday, it seemed to be a done deal: Netflix and Warner Bros. jointly announced that the streaming giant would be taking over the media and film company for around 71.3 billion euros. But in addition to the competition watchdogs, whose approval is still pending, US President Donald Trump also voiced criticism of the takeover. Shortly afterwards, film production company Paramount submitted an offer of around 93 billion euros.

Women’s health continues to face critical gaps in research, care, and access, hindering progress towards true gender equality in healthcare. The pharmaceutical industry must lead by addressing women’s underrepresentation in clinical research, promoting patient-centered care, strengthening prevention, and fostering systemic collaboration from the outset of medicine development.

The Court ruled that the Commission correctly applied criteria to calculate the fine, as regards the gravity of the abuse, but lowered it because of the scale