Brussels Playbook Podcast

Europe gears up for its China counterpunch

Brussels is getting increasingly worried about its economic relationship with Beijing … but the bloc doesn’t want to bring out the big guns just yet. While the EU already has the infamous ‘trade bazooka’ at…

Can Canada teach Europe how to stand up to Trump?

Canada is taking a much harder line against Donald Trump — and Brussels is watching closely. As the U.S.-Canada trade war escalates, Zoya Sheftalovich and Kathryn Carlson look at Mark Carney’s gamble, his call for…

The verdict that could shake up French politics

Europe is on the edge of its seat as it awaits a crucial verdict in the case of France’s National Rally leader, Marine Le Pen, today. If the Paris appeals court upholds her five-year ban on holding…

Why tensions are high between Poland and Ukraine

When Ireland takes over the presidency of the Council of the European Union on July 1, they will have a lot of hot-button issues to deal with. Host Zoya Sheftalovich sat down last week with Irish…

Can Ireland defend its trade with Russia?

The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, heads to Dublin today with awkward questions for Ireland. The country is facing increased scrutiny over the fact that a Russian-owned refinery on Irish soil continues exporting alumina to…

Budapest and Kyiv break the ice

After years of Hungary’s former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán blocking Ukraine’s path to join the EU, Budapest and Kyiv are talking again. That has Brussels wondering if Hungary might finally be softening its position on…

Caught between wars

Europe is no longer watching the conflict in the Middle East from a distance — it’s directly entangled. Iranian missiles flying over Cyprus. EU leaders divided over messaging. Von der Leyen and Kallas on parallel…