Eurotopics.net

Germany's foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel has floated the idea of a step-by-step lifting of the EU sanctions on Russia should a UN-monitored ceasefire be established in eastern Ukraine. In the meantime the EU has tightened the reins on Ukraine and is holding back on financial aid for Kiev on the grounds that it hasn't fulfilled the terms. Commentators of the countries in question examine the situation.

Three Hungarian parties called for more autonomy in Romania on Monday. Observers note with interest that aside from two Transylvanian parties the established UDMR with seats in the national parliament has also joined the initiative. Is this just a PR stunt or a serious political programme?

Clumsy flirting isn't a crime, 100 prominent French women including actress Catherine Deneuve have posited. In a commentary piece for Le Monde they criticise the MeToo campaign, saying it has created a climate of denunciation, fuels hatred of men and works against sexual freedom. The heated debate over the MeToo campaign continues.

The National Unity Party (UBP) won the parliamentary elections in Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus on Sunday, garnering 36.5 percent of the vote. The party wants closer ties between the internationally unrecognised Republic of Northern Cyprus and Turkey. Consequently its victory is perceived as a further setback for attempts to reunify Cyprus.

The relationship between Donald Trump and his former chief strategist Stephen Bannon appears to have broken down irrevocably. In Bannon's words, a meeting between Trump's son and son-in-law and a Russian lawyer during the election campaign was "treasonous". This and other comments that are likely to annoy the president will appear in a book by journalist Michael Wolff due to be published in the next few days. What do they mean for Trump's reputation - and for the Republican Party?

Former British prime minister Tony Blair has warned in a commentary piece that other countries may leave the EU, and called for a new referendum on Brexit. Some commentators are annoyed by the former leader's refusal to accept that the UK wants to leave the EU. Others advise the Labour Party to pay close attention to Blair's arguments.

Poland published data about convicted sex offenders online at the start of the year. A database provides the name, information about the place of birth and whereabouts and photos of roughly 800 offenders. Commentators discuss whether such a database should be made public.