Year: 2024

‘Russia launches record number of drones’ & ‘French mass rape trial concludes’ & ‘Merkel releases highly anticipated memoir’ – Paper Talk Europe EU

Russia’s record bombing of Ukraine leads much of the bloc’s major news sites this morning as Ukraine’s air force says it has shot down 76 Russian drones in 17 regions, whilst another 95 were lost from their radars or downed by electronic jamming defensive systems in overnights attacks.

Former German chancellor Angela Merkel also dominates much of the European news. A formidable feature of European politics, Merkel served Germany for 16 years. Today, her memoir Freedom is released. The highly anticipated memoir confronts criticisms of her policies on Russia and migration, which some say left Germany overly dependent on Russian gas and has fueled the rise of the far right in the Deutschland.

The conclusion of the mass rape trial in France finds plenty of space as prosecutors demand the maximum sentence for Gisèle Pelicot’s ex-husband and women around the world protesting for an end to violence against women. Much of the European media – including the UK – are running various campaigns and stories around violence towards women, sexual assault and calls for governments to do better.

More than 140 flood warnings remain in place across England, Wales and Scotland as the after-effects of Storm Bert are felt. More rain is expected to fall today.

Politics leads the way in the media today – in print and online – as the prime minister makes pledges to get more people back into work with reforms to overhaul job centres and more mental health funding. Some of Britain’s biggest cultural and sporting institutions such as the Premier League and the Royal Shakespeare Company will hire teenagers to teach them skills in a drive to get young people into work or education.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves defended her budget yesterday as businesses continued to complain. The chancellor dismissed business warnings that tax rises in the budget will make it harder to hire more people. Reeves has promised that there will be no more rises during this government’s term.