PORTUGAL: Some Missing Children More Equal than Others

Never before has the Portuguese idiom "para o inglês ver" (literally: for the English to see), which means putting on a front to impress outsiders and ward off criticism, been so apt as today in Portugal, when the entire country has its attention riveted on the case of a four-year-old British girl who disappeared from a hotel two weeks ago.

POLAND: Highway Dreams Fly Over Rospuda Valley

In a campaign that has won the support of Polish public opinion and the European Union (EU), environmental groups are hoping to thwart the Polish cabinet's plan to construct a highway over the protected Rospuda valley.

POLAND: Abortion Laws Not Strong Enough For Some

With the strictest abortion laws in Europe, one would expect any debates to revolve around its liberalisation. Yet in 21st century Poland, the abortion issue has been unsuccessfully raised by politicians seeking to strengthen anti-abortion legislation even further.

SERBIA: A Government At Last

Serbian leaders finally reached agreement on a new coalition government Friday, more than three months after the inconclusive January elections.

UKRAINE: Elections Ahead, Again

Ukraine's latest power clash is heading towards a political, rather than legal solution. President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovich have agreed on early elections, but disagree over the details.

BRITAIN: With Friends Like His…

That boring old truism, that people are judged by the company they keep, must be true also of leaders. Because that is where outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair hit his tragic flaw - he kept rather close company with U.S. President George W. Bush.

BALKANS: Serbia Plunges Back into the Past

Serbia took a plunge into its dubious past with the election of ultranationalist Tomislav Nikolic from the Serbian Radical Party as parliament speaker, the second most powerful position in the country.

RELIGION: Serbian Church Advances into Public Space

After decades in the shadows of communist rule, the Serbian Orthodox Church is fighting for a bigger presence in public life.

FRANCE: Another Political Thatcher Is Born

Nicolas Sarkozy's triumph in the French presidential elections could open the way for deep political and social changes, not unlike those that began with the era of Margaret Thatcher in Britain in the 1980s.

POLAND-GERMANY: Neighbours, But Not Much Love

The visit to Poland by German Chancellor Angela Merkel last month came as an attempt at closing the gap separating the two neighbours.

BULGARIA: Addicted to Russia’s Energy

A member of the European Union since Jan 1 2007, Bulgaria still takes its cues on energy from Russia.

RIGHTS: Germans Struggle to Resolve Justice Issues

Thirty years after the German's chief federal prosecutor Siegfried Buback was assassinated by left-wing terrorists, a debate has re-surfaced over what should be the appropriate punishment for a convicted killer - and whether politically motivated crimes deserve exceptionally harsh punishment.

SLOVAKIA: Hungarian Autonomy Feared

There are fears the election of a new leader for the ethnic Hungarian party in Slovakia will revive the most explosive domestic political topic in the country - autonomy for the Hungarian minority.

ROMANIA: What are Intellectuals Doing with Politics

Over the past months, the Romanian Parliament passed a censorship motion against reformist justice minister Monica Macovei and suspended President Traian Basescu. As the elected representatives of the people get increasingly entangled in power games, prominent intellectuals try to speak up, only to be slandered in response.

PRESS FREEDOM DAY-RUSSIA: Posthumous Honour Points to Muzzled Media

A posthumous award will be presented on Press Freedom Day Thursday in honour of Anna Politkovskaya, the investigative reporter who exposed human rights abuses including rape, abductions and killings in the breakaway republic Chechnya.

FRANCE: Sarkozy Needs Also to Get Past Himself

Opinion polls suggest that ruling party candidate Nicolas Sarkozy will win the second and decisive round of the French presidential elections May 6. But to do so he must triumph over Socialist candidate Ségolène Royal and also his own poor image among a substantial minority of French citizens.

ROMANIA: Corruption Concerns Split Government

The Romanian government stands divided by differences that have emerged between the President and the Prime Minister, many of them over the issue of corruption.

MAY DAY: Of All, Russian Unions Begin to Lose Members

Squeezed between political change and budgetary difficulties, federal and regional trade unions are beginning to lose large numbers of active members. At many workplaces unions simply do not exist.

ALBANIA: Long and Winding Road Straightening Out

For a corner of the world where until 17 years ago a foreign visitor was either the exotic Marxist-Leninist relishing the successes of a communist system or the adventurer looking for a good story to tell back home, Albania has made quite a jump.

LABOUR-SPAIN: Immigrants’ Plight Ignored by Unions Ahead of May Day

The conditions faced by immigrants in Spain, who despite their contribution to the economy are the most vulnerable when it comes to labour rights, have not even been mentioned in the demands and grievances voiced by the country's trade union federations as they prepare for May 1, International Labour Day.

CLIMATE CHANGE: EU Emissions to Rise, Despite Claims

One month after the European Union's leaders promised robust action against climate change, green campaigners have accused key EU bodies of implementing policies that will lead to increased emissions of greenhouse gases.