Bulgaria is on track to join the Eurozone on 1 January 2026. On 4 June the EU Commission is expected to publish a positive convergence report confirming that Bulgaria has met all the accession criteria and giving it the green light. Now, however, President Rumen Radev has applied the brakes and called for a referendum that could stop the introduction of the single currency. The national press objects.
The Catholic Church has a new pope, Leo XIV, after the conclave elected Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost, a cardinal with US and Peruvian citizenship, on the second day of voting yesterday. In his first address, Leo emphasised the importance of world peace. Commentators discuss his qualifications as leader of the Church - and to what extent an American in the Holy See can act as a counterweight to Donald Trump.
Russia is celebrating the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany with a large military parade today. State guests from around 30 countries including Belarus, China, Slovakia and Brazil are attending. Commentators examine the symbolism of the ostentatious celebrations as the country wages war against Ukraine, as well as the motives of those attending.
The UK and the US have agreed on a trade pact that reduces tariffs between the two countries. According to UK sources, tariffs on car imports to the US are to be lowered, those on steel and aluminium abolished entirely and import duties on US goods cut. Prior to signing this deal, the UK had finalised a free-trade agreement with India this week. Europe's press is divided in its assessment of the plans.
The Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950 is widely regarded as the birth of today's EU: then French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), whose six founding states were initially to pool their production. Europe Day 2025 is a thought-provoking 75th anniversary, as a look at the commentary sections shows.
On Wednesday, the day after his election as German chancellor, Friedrich Merz flew to Paris. In a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron the two leaders reaffirmed the close ties between their countries, which had recently cooled, as well as their shared interests. Merz then flew directly to Warsaw to meet Prime Minister Donald Tusk and reassert the desire for close ties with Poland. Commentators take stock.
The German Bundestag elected Friedrich Merz as the country's new chancellor on Tuesday - but only in the second round of voting after the CDU leader failed to secure enough support from the ranks of the conservative-social democratic coalition in the first round and fell six votes short of the required majority. After the vote the cabinet members were also sworn in. Europe's media discuss the causes of the false start and its consequences.
India has attacked targets in neighbouring Pakistan and the Pakistan-controlled part of the disputed Kashmir region. Official sources in New Delhi stress that only "terrorist infrastructure" was targeted, but Islamabad says 31 civilians were killed and has vowed to retaliate. This latest escalation in the long-standing conflict was prompted by a terrorist attack on tourists in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir.
The conclave, in which 133 cardinals are convening in the Vatican to elect Pope Francis's successor, kicks off today. They will hold four ballots a day, after which the ballot papers are burnt and black smoke rises into the sky until white smoke proclaims: "Habemus Papam". Commentators take a closer look at the procedure.
Following the announcement of Israel's plan to conquer and permanently occupy the Gaza Strip, spokespersons for the terrorist militia group Hamas have declared that they are no longer interested in negotiating a ceasefire. Israeli army chief Eyal Zamir has announced that tens of thousands of reservists will be called up for the upcoming operations.