Eurotopics.net

The Eurogroup finance ministers have agreed on a reform of the monetary union. The ESM bailout fund is to be boosted in a bid to make the euro more crisis-proof. Macron's reform proposals, including the setting up of a Eurozone budget, are to be discussed further. Some commentators are disappointed at the minimal consensus. Others are glad that things are not moving too fast.

After a crisis meeting between President Macron and his government the tax hike on fuel is off the table for the time being. Prime Minister Philippe said on Tuesday that the "unity of the fatherland" must not be endangered. The yellow vests have nevertheless announced that they will once again take to the streets this weekend. What impact will the government's concessions have?

Only a few hours before the start of the Brexit debate in the British House of Commons the government suffered a first setback when parliament voted that the legal advice on the deal with the EU which it had wanted to keep secret must be made public. This does not bode well for the coming debate, commentators fear.

With her appearance in Katowice Greta Thunberg has garnered worldwide attention for her environmental commitment. The 15-year-old went on strike in the summer. Instead of attending school she has called on the parliament in Stockholm to stop climate change. Greta's activities are provoking strange reactions, Sweden's press reports.

The Central European University (CEU), established by George Soros, will move a large part of its campus from Budapest to Vienna in the coming academic year. A new law prohibits the private university from awarding US diplomas. The Orbán government has also refused to sign an agreement with the State of New York that would have made it possible for the university to continue operating in the Hungarian capital.