Eurotopics.net

In the coming winter season there will be hardly any restrictions for vaccinated and recovered tourists in Austria - apart from having to wear FFP2 masks in cable cars. With memories of the Ischgl resort fiasco in 2020 still fresh, the country's newspapers examine the rules that have now been adopted.

Half a year after the parliamentary elections, the Netherlands still has no government. King Willem-Alexander will kick off the parliamentary year today with a speech written by the caretaker government. Commentators examine the problems plaguing Dutch politics.

Russia's parliamentary elections came to an end on Sunday. According to initial results, Putin's United Russia party secured victory with just under 45 percent of the vote, while the Communists came a distant second with 20 percent, followed by three other parties considered loyal to the Kremlin. Several strong candidates of the opposition parties were imprisoned before the elections. Europe's press assesses the outcome from different perspectives.

The US, UK and Australia have signed a defence alliance pact for the Indo-Pacific: the Aukus deal. Among other measures Australia is to receive nuclear-powered submarines featuring US and British technology. The alliance is seen as a move to join forces against China, but it cancels a contract under which France would have supplied Australia with submarines. Opinions differ on the pact's causes and consequences.

Namejs 2021, Latvia's largest military exercise of the year involving around 10,000 soldiers, is taking place between the end of August and 3 October. Urban drills with soldiers shooting blanks drills were staged in the centre of Riga on the weekend, causing fear and confusion among passers-by who had apparently not been informed and triggering outrage on social media. Latvia's press shows understanding for the anger but stresses the need for such simulation exercises to prepare for the future.