Eurotopics.net

US President Joe Biden has postponed the final withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. His predecessor Donald Trump had agreed with the Taliban on 1 May 2021 as the deadline for US troops to leave but Biden has now set September 11 - the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington - as the new date. A symbolic gesture, but one that cannot conceal the failure of the West in Afghanistan, as commentators explain.

US President Joe Biden has called Vladimir Putin and suggested a face-to-face meeting - just weeks after strongly criticising his Russian counterpart. Everything points to a slight thaw between the two countries - which not all commentators approve of.

Austria's Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (The Greens) has resigned from his post and will be replaced by Wolfgang Mückstein, a physician. Anschober suffered a circulatory collapse for the second time a week ago, which he said was due to exhaustion. "I realised that I had to pull the emergency brake," said the 60-year-old. For commentators, the resignation sounds alarm bells.

The Muslim fasting month of Ramadan began for Muslims across the globe on Tuesday. Adults and believers who are in good health are required not to eat or drink anything from sunrise to sunset. Due to the pandemic, people will not be allowed to gather to break their fast together this year either. This will leave more time for contemplation and reflection, commentators explain.

Spain has commemorated the 90th anniversary of the Second Spanish Republic, which was proclaimed on 14 April 1931 and introduced democratic rights in the country for the first time, albeit only for a short time before a military coup triggered a civil war which led to decades of dictatorship under General Franco. Commentators take very different views of the significance of the Second Republic for today's Spain.