Eurotopics.net

Former US President Donald Trump must appear in court in Washington on Thursday, charged with attempting to falsify the 2020 election results and for his role in the storming of the Capitol on 6 January 2021. A look at Europe's comment columns shows how much rides on the trial's outcome.

According to Polish reports, two military helicopters from neighbouring Belarus violated Polish airspace on Tuesday. Warsaw sees this as a deliberate provocation. The Belarusian defence ministry has rejected the accusations, saying that Poland is using them as a pretext to militarise the border. Commentators see a dangerous spiral of escalation.

The planned expansion of the lignite mine on the Aegean coast is sparking protest in Turkey. Environmental activists have set up a resistance camp in the Akbelen forest in the town of Milasi in Muğla province. The situation escalated last week when the police used water canons and pepper spray to curb the protests, but the activists are staying put. The Turkish press is divided.

Romania's Supreme Court has acquitted two former officers of the Securitate secret police accused of involvement in the murder of the regime critic Gheorghe Ursu in pre-trial detention in 1985. The Institute for the Investigation of Communist Crimes (IICCMER) has reacted with consternation. Commentators also have little understanding for the verdict and the reasoning behind it.

The Catholic World Youth Day began in Lisbon on Tuesday evening with the opening mass. Pope Francis plans to visit the event from Wednesday until its conclusion on Sunday. The run-up to WYD saw considerable criticism, especially in Portugal itself, of the high costs of hosting the mass event. Europe's commentators voice high expectations and serious doubts.