Eurotopics.net

US President Donald Trump welcomed Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado to the White House on Thursday to discuss the future of her country, Venezuela. At the end of the meeting, Machado presented the president with the Nobel Peace Prize medal she received last year, citing his commitment to the freedom of the Venezuelan people. Commentators are appalled.

After an unsuccessful meeting on the Greenland issue on Wednesday, several European Nato states will send military delegations to the Arctic island. There is now also disagreement about the objective of a working group set up at the Washington meeting: according to US President Donald Trump, it will merely clarify technical details for the US takeover of Greenland. This has been vehemently contradicted in Copenhagen and Nuuk.

The situation in Iran remains tense. After the security forces violently suppressed the protests, which had been ongoing since December, people are no longer taking to the streets for now. Information is scarce due to the internet blackout. Human rights organisations have reported thousands of deaths and more than 10,000 arrests. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has called on Iranians to continue protesting and promised assistance.

Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok announced the date for the 2026 parliamentary elections on Tuesday. The Hungarians will decide on 12 April who governs their country: Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party, which has been in power for 16 years, or Péter Magyar's Tisza party. Several opinion polls put the Tisza party ahead of Fidesz. Commentators predict a heated campaign.