Eurotopics.net

The rift had already been obvious for some time, and then on Thursday the AfD was excluded from the Identity and Democracy group in the EU Parliament. Marine Le Pen's Rassemblement National and Matteo Salvini's Lega were the driving forces behind the move, which was reportedly triggered by remarks by the AfD's lead candidate in the EU elections, Maximilian Krah, in which he downplayed the crimes of the SS during World War II. What comes next for Europe's far right?

A mysterious Russian government proposal has caused a stir. Published on an official Russian portal on Tuesday, it has now been deleted but involved a revision of the "geographical coordinates" defining Russia's borders in various areas of the Baltic Sea which - according to the draft - are inaccurate. Commentators are at odds over the seriousness of the incident.

China has been conducting military exercises encircling the island of Taiwan since Thursday. The country has reported dozens of violations of its air defence zone. Yesterday China threatened bloodshed and today a Chinese military spokesman said they were testing the China's ability to seize power over the self-governed island. The press takes a critical view of the latest developments.

The governments of Spain, Ireland and Norway have announced that they intend to recognise the state of Palestine in the coming days. Israel has condemned the move as support for Hamas terrorism and recalled its ambassadors from Dublin and Oslo. A similar decision is expected regarding Madrid. A glance at Europe's commentary sections shows how divided opinions are on the subject.