For The Wall Street Journal, the announcement of trade talks is the result of months of backroom wrangling by British diplomats, both to secure support for the trade deal and in order to ensure a diplomatic coup for UK Prime Minister David Cameron, as he hosts the G-8 leaders in Northern Ireland. The economic daily writes –

For Die Welt the agreement on a free-trade zone between the EU and the United States will “mainly be of benefit to the US.” According to a study commisioned by the Bertelsmann Foundation and conducted by the Ifo Institute, which probes the consequences of the the implementaion of a free-trade agreement on 126 states —

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung points out that a further result of an agreement would be reduced trade within the EU —

For its part, Tageszeitung shares the concerns voiced by an association of 22 NGOs, which has pointed out that safeguards for consumers will be undermined when European markets are opened up to the US.

"The North is sinking," headlines Czech financial daily Hospodářské Noviny, as flooding in Bohemia continues for the fourth consecutive day. In Prague, where the Vltava broke its banks on Tuesday morning, the situation seems to have stabilised but Ústí nad Labem and the north of the country are threatened by the rising Elbe River, the paper says, adding that –

The flooding of the Danube is ravaging Austria and in particular Salzburg, the Tyrol and the Vorarlberg region. Austrian daily Die Presse warns that "400,000 buildings in Austria are in areas at risk of flooding, mud slides, or avalanches, including 150,000 in permanent-risk 'red zones'". The paper adds that –

In Germany, Chancellor Angela "Merkel awards €100m to the flood victims, headlines German daily Der Tagesspiegel. In the Bavarian town of Passau, the waters reached a record level of over 12 metres – "the worst flood in more than a half-century," the paper says. It also notes that, just three months before scheduled legislative elections, Merkel has kept a low profile during her recent trips to the flooded areas–

"The waters can flood the country," says the front page of Hungarian daily Népszava. It is Hungary's turn to prepare for the onslaught of the historic flooding by the Danube. The river's level could reach 8.75 metres, or 15cm over the record highs posted in 2002 and 2006. Népszava adds that –

Angela Merkel and François Hollande have made up. The "Franco-German contribution," announced on May 30, shows that the German Chancellor now supports the French President's proposals concerning the governance of the Eurozone. French financial daily Les Echos notes that –

In a leader article, French daily Le Monde explains some of the measures proposed –

Reaction in the German press was mixed. Spiegel Online notes that the French President is now "getting all cosy" with the German Chancellor. The web site of the weekly magazine, however, remains sceptical that the "turning point" is genuine, even if Hollande is "making efforts to establish a Franco-German entente".

For business daily Handelsblatt, Angela Merkel and François Hollande's wish to put in place a full-time president and an independent budget for the Eurozone gives the impression of "the Eurozone seceding in secret from the rest of the EU"

As for daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung it says that François Hollande has long been a "master of duplicity" –