Eurotopics.net

Armenia plans to hold a joint military exercise with the US in mid-September - against the backdrop of the crisis over the blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh region. However, it has cancelled this year's joint drills with the CSTO military alliance, of which Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan are all members. Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had recently described Armenia's dependence on Russia in security matters as a mistake.

Heat, drought, fires and floods - Europe is severely and increasingly affected by extreme weather phenomena. Commentators analyse failures and debate how these obvious consequences of climate change can be addressed swiftly and effectively.

In Finland, a citizens' initiative petition calling for the abolition of fur farming has gathered more than 50,000 signatures within 24 hours. This direct democracy instrument means that the petition must now be debated in parliament. Commentators discuss whether a ban would be a sensible move.

Several days after Ukraine alleged that Russian drones landed on Romanian territory, Romania has admitted that parts of what is possibly a Russian drone may have fallen within the Nato country's borders. Defence Minister Angel Tilvar confirmed that suspicious debris had been found in the border region with Ukraine. The army will investigate the findings, he said. Commentators discuss the dangers and potential reactions.