1- Tragedy in Berlin: A deadly lorry 2- Turkey and Russia: On edge -The Economist

Tragedy in Berlin: A deadly lorry At least 12 people died and about 50 were wounded when a lorry sped into a Christmas market in Berlin last night, in what Chancellor Angela Merkel called a terrorist attack. The incident highlights tensions over Mrs Merkel’s liberal refugee policy amid fears that extremists slipped into the country alongside legitimate asylum-seekers. If it marks the start of a jihadist campaign, it could herald a turning point in German politics

Turkey and Russia: On edge The assassination in Ankara yesterday of Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, will not derail the detente between the two countries. In fact, both presidents signalled that ties may deepen after Mr Karlov’s death. Western countries are right to worry about the rapprochement, yet they have even more reason to be thankful that Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin will not come to blows, writes our Turkey correspondent