Eurotopics.net

Due to the sharp rise in coronavirus infection rates, many European countries have reimposed tough restrictions: from closing bars and cultural attractions to making masks compulsory outdoors. European commentators heatedly discuss whether individual measures are justified.

A runoff presidential election will be held in the internationally unrecognized Republic of Northern Cyprus on Sunday. In the first ballot neither incumbent Mustafa Akıncı (29.8 percent) nor Prime Minister Ersin Tatar of the conservative UBP - which is closely related to Erdoğan's AKP - (32.4%) achieved an absolute majority. Akıncı wants the reunification of Cyprus. Observers question how much he can accomplish.

Hundreds of thousands of believers go on a pilgrimage once a year to the eastern Romanian city of Iași to pray at the tomb of St. Paraskeva. The authorities had banned the pilgrimage this year due to the coronavirus, a move criticized by the Orthodox Church. In a bid to calm the tensions, the city granted access to the tomb to thousands of believers who had come to visit it despite the ban on Wednesday.

The UN General Assembly reallocated almost a third of the seats on its Human Rights Council by vote on Tuesday. China, Russia and Cuba are now represented on the body, whose task is to monitor and promote respect for human rights worldwide. The election has provoked a storm of criticism - not least from Europe's commentators, who also have other complaints about the allocation of seats.

The dispute over the EU budget from 2021 to 2027 and the associated corona recovery fund continues. The European Parliament has rejected a compromise proposal by Berlin, while Poland's Deputy Prime Minister Kaczyński has threatened to make use of the country's veto right. The sticking point: should countries that violate the rule of law criteria receive less funding? Not just this question gives commentators food for thought.