Eurotopics.net

The trial of twelve Catalan separatists - most of whom were members of the regional government in 2017 - begins today at the Supreme Court in Madrid. Spain's public prosecutor is charging them with rebellion, insurgency and misuse of public funds for their role in the independence referendum held on 1 October 2017. Is the court the right place to resolve the Catalan independence issue?

Next-generation mobile telecommunications promise communication without dead zones and large-scale networking of technical devices, enabling autonomous driving among other things. But if network supplier Huawei develops the 5G network there is the risk that China could misuse this sensitive infrastructure. Observers have qualms about security.

The rightist League party has won a clear victory in elections in Italy's Abruzzo region. Interior Minister Matto Salvini played a leading role in his party's election campaign. Commentators see the right-wing populist politician in a dominant position and discuss the impact at the national and European level.

Hungary's government wants to boost the country's birth rate with financial incentives. According to its new family plan all women under 40 who marry for the first time will receive a loan equivalent to 30,000 euros. With every child they bear repayment of the loan will be deferred and successively waived. How much sense does this family policy make?

Vor dem Obersten Gericht in Madrid beginnt am heutigen Dienstag der Prozess gegen zwölf katalanische Separatisten - überwiegend Mitglieder der damaligen Regionalregierung. Die Staatsanwaltschaft wirft ihnen im Zuge des Unabhängigkeitsreferendums vom 1. Oktober 2017 Rebellion, Aufruhr und Veruntreuung öffentlicher Mittel vor. Ist der Gerichtssaal der richtige Ort, um die Katalonien-Frage zu lösen?