Europe Ukraine In the four years since the beginning of the war a number of war-themed murals have appeared on buildings and walls throughout Kyiv, a phenomenon that has been dubbed 'Martial art'
Europe Vatican City Pope Leo underlined that an era without conflict is feasible and that praying together from different religious traditions can change history; the message was delivered to the International Encounter for Peace and Reconciliation in his home city Chicago
Europe Switzerland Despite sanctions, Swiss manufactured components have surfaced in remains of weapons used to attack Ukraine, to the point that Swiss microprocessors, GPS modules, connectors, cables exceed those from any other European country
Europe Iceland Over 83% of the public have high trust in the Icelandic Coast Guard, which remains the institution that people trust most according to Gallup's latest survey on trust in public institutions; National Church of Iceland has seen the highest rise in trust
Europe Moldova State of alert for energy has been introduced by the National Crisis Management Center; in Tiraspol the supply of heating and hot water has been suspended, with thermal power plants temporarily shut down and cars wait in long lines at gas filling stations
Europe Netherlands Equal opportunities are under scrutiny on Women's Day, as government plans to reduce parental leave benefits for higher income earners: the measure would disproportionately affect men, who often earn more than women, discouraging fathers from taking leave
Europe Norway 19 people were murdered in Norway last year, the lowest number of registered homicides since 1990: 2025 saw a rise in serious crime among youth, often tied to drug smuggling and brutal gang violence, with a number of cross-border episodes
Europe North Macedonia Fugitive Artan Grubi has been placed in house detention rather than prison, after he turned himself in following months on the run; the decision sparks accusations of behind-the-scenes deals
Europe Estonia The Estonian delegation boycotted the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games 2026 due to the inclusion of Russian and Belarus athletes competing under their national flags; opening or closing ceremonies will also not be broadcast on any ERR channels
Europe Sweden Over 2.000 reports of suspected crimes targeting socially important activities have been received in 2025, double than 2024: among them burglary and involuntary illegal trespassing or photography; figures are partly due to more sites being classified
Europe Portugal Snowfall in the higher areas of madeira brought to the closure of access roads to the mountains, while bad weather forced the cancellation of over 110 flights; meanwhile, Ryanair confirmed it will cease connections with the island
Europe Croatia Croatia is officially free of landmines thirty-one years after the end of the Homeland War; the effort to clear all known minefields cost 208 lives, including those of 41 deminers, and around 1,2 billion euros
Europe Bulgaria New interim government, led by Andrey Gyurov, announced general elections for 19 April, the eighth in Bulgaria since 2021; polls predict a strong showing by former President Rumen Radev’s as-yet-unnamed new party