Eurotopics.net

A proposed change to the curriculum has sparked controversy in Portugal. The country's only Nobel laureate, José Saramago, may lose compulsory reading status in secondary schools. Saramago, who was an avowed communist until his death in 2010, left the country in the 1990s following a row with the Conservatives. Against this backdrop, the proposal by the Conservatives, who are now in power again, has fuelled a heated debate.

Under Viktor Orbán, despite EU and Nato membership Hungary's position was pro-Russian and anti-Ukraine. After his election victory Péter Magyar has made it clear that: "Ukraine is the victim in this war." And if Putin calls, he will tell him to "stop the killing after four years". The media discuss what the new Hungarian stance on the two warring parties could mean.

After the initial failure of peace talks with Iran, the US has begun its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. According to the US millitary, six merchant ships arriving from Iran have been forced to turn back within the first 24 hours. President Trump has said that a key reason for the blockade is to prevent transit tolls from falling into the hands of the regime in Tehran. What consequences could this provoke?

US President Donald Trump has hit back at Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni after she described his tirade against Pope Leo XIV as "unacceptable". Trump replied saying: "She is the one who is unacceptable, because she doesn't care if Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy up in two minutes if it had the chance!"

For the first time in history, a US president has verbally attacked the Pope. In a lengthy social media post Donald Trump said the Pontiff was "terrible for foreign policy" and was damaging the Catholic Church. Leo XIV has repeatedly criticised Trump's policies, from migration policy to the war in Iran, albeit indirectly. In response to Trump's tirade, the pope said he was proclaiming the message of the Gospel.