Eurotopics.net

Commentators are thrilled but not surprised that with Belgium, England, France and Croatia, four European teams have reached the Fifa World Cup semi-finals. They are more surprised, however, by the extraordinary success of the Croatian team, which with its win over Russia has put itself on a par with the legendary "bronze generation" team that placed third in 1998.

In the run-up to this week's Nato summit, US President Trump's critical stance has many participating states concerned about the cohesion of the defence alliance. Commentators explain how Nato can demonstrate strength and resolve despite the numerous imponderables.

The EU Parliament has rejected controversial plans for a reform of Internet copyright laws that would introduce compulsory upload filters. In a plenary session the parliament voted by a thin majority against presenting the bill to the member states. Commentators discuss the pros and cons of the reform and see it as a ray of hope for European policy that the topic has drawn so much attention.

Two more British citizens have been found unconscious after being exposed to the nerve agent Novichok. According to British police they had come into contact with a "contaminated object". Journalists speculate on whether the object was a left-over from the Skripal case or whether the Russian - or British - secret service had a hand in the poisoning.

German Interior Minister Seehofer (CSU) has paid a visit to Austrian Chancellor Kurz in a bid to push through his plans for stopping asylum seekers on the German border. Kurz, however, has rejected the idea that refugees to whom the Dublin Regulation applies should be sent back to Austria. The politics of national egotisms have reached their limit, media in both countries comment gleefully.