Eurotopics.net

At a video summit on Wednesday EU leaders reiterated their "full support for the European perspective of the Western Balkans". They also promised their colleagues from the six non-EU countries in the region that these would receive 3.3 billion in emergency aid. Once again, however, no time window for their potential accession to the EU was named. Commentators take stock.

Russia currently has the highest number of new infections in Europe. In many places hospitals have become hubs of infection. Medical staff are complaining about a lack of protective equipment, which is causing infections and deaths within their ranks. The press also condemn the situation.

The US's accusation that China is lying about the origins of the coronavirus is growing ever louder: according to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo evidence exists that the virus originated in a laboratory in Wuhan. The World Health Organisation criticised Bejing for not letting a WHO mission into the country but has said it considers the accusations unfounded. Commentators cast a critical look at the US.

The European Central Bank's (ECB) bond-buying programme partially contravenes German law, Germany's Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday. It said that the ECB had failed to adequately explain the appropriateness of the purchases and that the decision-making process had not been scrutinised by the Bundestag and Bundesrat. What does the ruling mean for the EU?

The European Central Bank's (ECB) bond-buying programme partially contravenes German law, Germany's Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday. It said the ECB had failed to adequately explain the appropriateness of the purchases and that the decision-making process had not been scrutinised by the Bundestag and Bundesrat. Commentators discusss whether the judgement is justified or presumptuous.