Eurotopics.net

In an appearance on CNN, former US President Donald Trump declared that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours, however without explaining how exactly he would go about doing it if given the chance. Trump also repeated his claims that the 2020 election was rigged. Commentators are unsurprised but take a look at the potentially serious consequences.

Just days before the presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey on Sunday it still looks like a tight race between long-time incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his challenger Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. Commentators examine the implications of an election victory for the opposition alliance over Erdoğan and his AK Party for Europe.

Former prime minister Boyko Borisov and his Gerb party narrowly won the recent parliamentary elections in Bulgaria. Now Borisov has nominated EU Commissioner for Innovation Mariya Gabriel as his candidate for prime minister. Commentators welcome the decision and are for the most part optimistic that it could finally lead to a stable government in the country.

The Greeks elect a new parliament on May 21. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' ruling conservative Nea Dimokratia slumped in the polls after the train accident in March, but is still in the lead. In second place is former PM Alexis Tsipras with his left-wing opposition alliance Syriza. On 10 May a televised debate took place with all six leaders of parties represented in parliament.

On Thursday, the Austrian parliament decided to discontinue the world's oldest daily newspaper: as of 1 July the state-owned Wiener Zeitung will only be published digitally. At the same time, private media are protesting against the reform of public broadcasting under which national broadcaster ORF will be allowed to produce new content exclusively for the internet. The broadcasting fee system is also to be restructured and the fees lowered.