Eurotopics.net

Although Vladimir Putin has blamed Islamist terrorists for the attack in Moscow that left over 130 people dead, with a reference to those "who ordered it" he did not completely retract the version that Ukraine had a hand in the massacre. Seven suspects are now in custody. Four of them have already been brought to court, showing visible signs of torture. Commentators see this as a symptom of the climate in Russian society as a whole.

In the current edition of the World Happiness Report European countries, led by Finland, occupy the top nine places. But even within Europe, certain countries have fallen far behind their neighbours or dropped several places compared to previous rankings. Commentators look at why.

The non-aligned former foreign minister Ivan Korčok secured an unexpected victory in the first round of the Slovakian presidential election with 42.5 percent of the vote. Most polls had put Peter Pellegrini, parliamentary speaker and coalition partner of the country's controversial Prime Minister Robert Fico, in front, but instead he was left trailing behind with 37 percent. The two now face a second round of voting. Commentators generally see the interim result as a positive signal.

The EU leaders have decided to go ahead and use profits from frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine. Prior to the decision, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had repeatedly called for the assets to be confiscated but failed to gain majority support. Commentators are happy that Europe has recognised the seriousness of the situation, but for some it is still too sluggish in its actions.