German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze has called for more land to be made available for wind energy and has demanded that the government move forward on the issue. Schulze, a member of the Social Democrats (SPD) wants to see more backing for her proposal from Chancellor Angela Merkel's party, the Christian Democrats (CDU), the lead partner in Germany's governing coalition.

Following a long spell of online protests, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was back in front of the Swedish parliament building on Friday for an in-person protest against climate change.

An 18-year-old woman died at Genoa's San Martino hospital on Thursday after suffering a blood clot following vaccination with the AstraZeneca jab on 25 May, ANSA reported. A causal link between the death of Camilla Canepa and the vaccination has not been established but the case has raised concerns about the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine on young people.

Finland will hold local elections on Sunday in a first litmus test for the popular young Social Democratic PM Sanna Marin, who took office a mere 18 months ago and whose party is behind in polls across the Nordic country, AP reported. The 35-year-old Marin, who became Europe’s youngest government leader in December 2019, enjoys high personal popularity and has won international praise for her handling of the coronavirus crisis in the nation of 5.5 million.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced a drawing down of French forces battling Islamist militants in Mali in the troubled Sahel region of Africa during a wide-ranging press conference on Thursday, news wires reported. Macron said that France's counter-terrorism operation in West Africa would come to an end and be merged into a broader international mission. "We will make a drawdown in an organised way," he said, adding that details would be finalised by the end of June.

Hungary's populist premier flagged a hike in the minimum wage on Thursday and reaffirmed plans for a large tax refund to families in 2022, launching his campaign for next year's election that is shaping up as a competitive race for the first time in a decade, Reuters reports.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel remains opposed to lifting patent protections on vaccinations against Covid-19, government sources said on Thursday, ahead of the G7 summit, dpa reported. The G7 summit is to be held in Cornwall, England, from Friday to Sunday.

Greece on Thursday was gripped by a 24-hour nationwide strike which shut down transport and public services over labour reforms which critics say will formalise unpaid overtime. The walkout sidelined ferry services and trains, forced flight rescheduling and snarled most public transport in Athens, AFP reported. Public services shut down and state media also went offline for the day.

France enters its third and penultimate phase of easing Covid-19 restrictions on Wednesday as indicators continue to show the country's rate of infections subsiding, France 24 reported. After a seven-month ban on indoor dining, cafés and restaurants across the country will be permitted to welcome customers inside, albeit at half the establishment's seating capacity and with tables limited to a maximum of six people.

German industry is slowing the post Covid-19 recovery as input supply bottlenecks undermine the output growth, Reuters reported. Deficit of semiconductors, timber and other intermediate goods is seen as a major factor behind the unexpected slump of German industry in April, following a negative revised results for March, the Federal Statistics office said. The industrial output dropped 1.0% on the month after a downward revised increase of 2.2% in March.