Eurotopics.net

The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs has barred a journalist from the daily newspaper Deník N from attending a press conference despite the fact that according to the newspaper she had applied for accreditation in good time and in accordance with the rules. The journalists' association is now considering boycotting press conferences in retaliation. Commentators discuss whether this marks the beginning of a repressive trend, as well as appropriate responses.

Berlin's Christopher Street Day parade was cut short on Saturday evening following an attack. A van driver ploughed into a crowd on the fringes of the festival and then attacked passers-by with what appeared to be a machete. One woman died and 29 people were injured. The suspected 21-year-old perpetrator was a known Islamist. He was shot dead in a police operation on Sunday.

Massive wildfires are raging in France and Spain, with around 250,000 people forced to evacuate their homes on the French Atlantic coast in the area around Bordeaux. The fires are spreading towards the city and have yet to be brought under control. In Spain, firefighters are battling several major blazes in the Madrid and Valencia regions. In total, around 75,000 people have been evacuated so far.

Kazakhstan is widely regarded as Russia's silent ally. But now its president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, has called on Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin to end the fighting in Ukraine. At a summit in Omsk, Russia, at which both leaders were present, he urged Putin to freeze the conflict, adding that the causes of the war, which has resulted in heavy losses for both sides, was incomprehensible.

The Polish opposition party PiS has split following months of conflict between party leader Jarosław Kaczyński and former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. The break-up came after Morawiecki and his supporters rejected an ultimatum to pledge loyalty to the party leadership, with the result that more than 30 MPs have now left the party. The backdrop is disagreements over the party's direction in the run-up to the general election in 2027.