Eurotopics.net

The fighting directly on the EU's external border, the huge numbers of refugees arriving from Ukraine and the severing of political, economic and travel ties with Russia pose new challenges, but also bring opportunities for Europe, says the press.

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny has already spent over a year in a Russian prison camp. Now a Moscow court has sentenced the well-known Putin critic to nine additional years in prison under particularly harsh conditions. Commentators criticise the judgment and call for solidarity.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Monday that he will submit any potential peace deal with Russia to a popular vote in Ukraine. A referendum is necessary because the results of negotiations with Russia on the fate of Ukraine could be "historic", Zelensky said. Commentators react with cautious approval.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops has led to a barrage of harsh sanctions against Russia. The Russian economy has not yet collapsed, however. Europe's press debates whether the measures can be tightened even more, and what the long-term consequences may be.