Eurotopics.net

In Romania, the centre-right government of Florin Cîțu (PNL) has been ousted following a no-confidence vote initiated by the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and supported by the liberal Union to Save Romania party (USR-Plus), which had been thrown out of the governing coalition, and the right-wing nationalist AUR. Since it is not clear which parties could form a governing majority, commentators fear a long period of uncertainty - in the midst of the fourth wave of the pandemic.

Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš has also been implicated in the offshore transactions scandal. He allegedly acquired a property on the Côte d'Azur via shell companies over ten years ago. The press discusses the potential impact on his image and this weekend's parliamentary elections.

The Pandora Papers are showing once again how politicians, oligarchs and celebrities around the world use tax havens for secret transactions. The large-scale investigation has revealed that leading politicians such as Czech Prime Minister Babiš, Ukrainian President Zelensky and British ex-prime minister Tony Blair used such structures. Although their actions may be reprehensible, pointing the finger won't solve the problem, commentators admonish.

This year's Nobel Prize in Medicine has gone to David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian. The US researchers played a key role in determining exactly how nerves in the skin convert external stimuli into electrical impulses, laying the foundation for the development of more effective drugs against chronic pain and other treatments. Europe's press takes a rather sceptical view of the choice.

In Greece, there have been violent clashes between students and right-wing extremist groups. Among other incidents, masked aggressors wielding batons, stones and smoke bombs attacked young people and demonstrators outside a vocational school in Stavroupoli. The conservative government under Prime Minister Mitsotakis now faces heavy criticism for being too tolerant towards the far right.