Eurotopics.net

The EU Commission wants to make it easier for member states to pay subsidies to companies that invest in green technologies. Brussels' new plan, called the Net-Zero Industry Act, is a response to US President Joe Biden's massive subsidy package aimed at fighting inflation and promoting clean energy in the economy - the Inflation Reduction Act.

Sweden and Finland are still waiting for Turkey to approve their accession to Nato. An incident last Friday has put the dispute back in the spotlight: during a demonstration outside the city hall in Stockholm, activists hung a puppet of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The Swedish government has apologised.

After losing the parliamentary majority for his government in December, Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger has failed in his attempts to rebuild the previous governing alliance and has now agreed to early elections, which could take place this autumn. The national press wonders whether this can stop the decline of the country's political culture.

In the wake of persistent criticism of her conduct in office, German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht tendered her resignation on Monday, which was promptly accepted by Chancellor Olaf Scholz. According to public broadcaster ARD, Lower Saxony's Interior Minister Boris Pistorius is set to replace her. Commentators discuss why Lambrecht failed and how important Germany's defence policies are for Europe.

The 53rd World Economic Forum began in Davos on Monday evening, with top representatives from politics and business traditionally gathering at the event. According to founder Klaus Schwab, the goal of the Forum is "improving the state of the world". Europe's press debates whether this is at all true, and if so, what it would take to achieve it.