EU Confidential

While the French government collapses in Paris, Ursula von der Leyen stands unshaken in Strasbourg. It’s been a week of political tremors — some performative, others seismic. Just three months after facing her first motion of censure, the European Commission president was hit with not one but two new attempts to topple

What do Donald Trump’s culture war, Moldova’s EU ambitions, and Czechia’s upcoming parliamentary election have in common? They all reveal how Europe is being tested — and sometimes humiliated. In this episode of EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton speaks with Paweł Zerka, senior policy fellow at the European Council on

Trump says Ukraine can win — but should Europe believe him? At a hectic U.N. General Assembly in New York, U.S. President Donald Trump stunned world leaders with a dramatic rhetorical reversal on the war in Ukraine, mocking Russia as a “paper tiger” and urging NATO allies to shoot down Russian aircraft. Host Sarah Whea

From rule of law battles to inside stories, Věra Jourová looks back on a decade in the Berlaymont. The former European Commission vice president recalls her clashes and alliances in Brussels — from sparring with Frans Timmermans to discovering that Thierry Breton never laughed at her jokes. Now back in Prague as vice r

“Europe is in a fight.” With those words, Ursula von der Leyen set the tone for her State of the European Union speech — framing this as Europe’s “Independence Moment.” She proposed sanctions on extremist Israeli ministers over Gaza; floated using frozen Russian assets for Ukraine; and backed calls for a drone wall to

Under the jackhammers on Schuman, Brussels is filling back up for the rentrée — and the fault lines are showing. Host Sarah Wheaton is joined by colleagues Clea Caulcutt, Nick Vinocur and Paul Dallison to unpack a cliff-edge week: France’s confidence vote on an austerity budget that could topple Prime Minister François