Eurotopics.net

Alexei Navalny apparently wants to return to his homeland once he has recovered. The Russian opposition figure is currently being treated at the Charité hospital in Berlin after being targeted by what the German government has said was a poison gas attack. Is Navalny putting himself in harm's way once more? And is he willing to run this risk because he wants to increase his political clout?

Leading politicians from both parties in the US Congress warned British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab during his visit to Washington that the UK should not violate the Brexit withdrawal agreement with the EU. In the event of a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, the US Congress could not approve any trade agreement with Britain, they said. Commentators are hardly surprised by this firm stance.

In the aftermath of the fire in the Moria camp on Lesbos, Athens has not requested the transfer of the now homeless refugees to other EU countries - except in the case of 400 unaccompanied minors - but has instead set up a temporary tent camp for them. Germany has announced it will take in more than 1,600 refugees from Greece, while France will take several hundred. Most other countries have been hesitant in their response. Is a European solution to the crisis out of reach?

Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain signed an agreement establishing mutual diplomatic relations in Washington on Tuesday. US President Donald Trump, who brokered the deal, announced that this was the "dawn of a new Middle East". Europe's commentators are less convinced of the historic significance of the agreement.

In the local elections held on Sunday in Russia all the governors of the Kremlin party United Russia were confirmed, but in some places other party representatives suffered significant defeats. Commentators reflect on how this came about: was Alexei Navalny's smart voting strategy successful, or is the Kremlin cleverly mimicking democracy?