Euroscopic Podcast

It has been a busy week in European politics, and much of it has to do with the woman at the top and the executive office she runs. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen came back from Bucharest, the capital of Romania and site of her EPP’s congress, last week officially anointed the conservative’s pick for another go in the top job. But questions linger over how much support she really has.

That’s an issue for von der Leyen the candidate. Von der Leyen the president has others. Her Commission keeps facing tough questions over repeated “cash for migration” deals. There’s also a cash-for-Orban trade that European Parliament is so suspicious of they might take the Commission to court over it in a precedent-setting case.

Elena Sánchez Nicolás oversees coverage of these and other stories as EUobserver’s managing editor. She joins us to tell us what’s on her plate in an “ask the editor” segment we hope to make a regular feature of the pod.

Then, history professor and Ukraine/Russia guy Michael Kimmage calls in from Washington, D.C. with his helpful insights into the war in Ukraine — how we got here and where it might be going. He has a forthcoming book on that very subject.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

Notes:

* In case you haven’t heard it already, here’s more on the Oscars acceptance speech we play a clip of.

* Editorial change: William, not Martin, edited this episode.

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback. Facts matter.ds

What does an MEP and a U.S. Army general (ret.) have in common? (Besides this podcast.) Both are looking to 2024 and asking, in his own way, what do we as a society want?

Damian Boeselager, the pan-EU Volt party’s only representative in Brussels, explains the baked-in disconnect between how the European Union works and why it gets so little credit for doing anything. Even as pro-EU national governments make the case for the importance of the bloc, they then often like to steal its thunder.

One thing the EU does appear to be intent on is adding a defense feather to the regulatory, economic, and fiscal feathers already in its cap. An EU army may be a long way off (if it ever comes), but weapon production and procurement seem like goals most can get behind. Getting there will require a new way that the EU looks at itself — not to be mention a lot of money for a new bucket of policy initiatives.

All good, as long as it doesn’t cannibalize NATO, says Lt. Gen. (ret.) Ben Hodges. The former commander of U.S. Army Europe wants the West to get real about Ukraine: Set a goal, make a plan, and get there. Ignore the nuclear noise.

Winning in Ukraine, however, might be tough when one of its biggest backers can’t keep its phone lines secure. We tried — really! — not to talk about Germany this week, but Germany wouldn’t let us. So we run through the Taurus and eavesdropping affair(s) as speedily as possible.

Plus, France makes history that American Democrats could only balk at. Poland and Brussels bury the €137 billion axe over rule of law — provisionally, of course.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

The music clip that you surely know and love is here in full.

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback. Facts matter.ds

French authorities seem pretty convinced that Russia was looking to exploit the country’s political sensitivity towards all-things antisemitism. Meanwhile, Germany seems confused about what antisemitism even is. At national and European levels, domestic politics appear to be coming under pressure from a number of angles, and the farmers are — literally — at the gates.

Thankfully, the view from above is harmonious once again — and it only took 649 days to get there. Hungary at last approved Sweden’s entry into NATO, just in time for French President Emmanuel Macron to open the door to some kind of European troop presence in Ukraine. Välkommen till klubben!

For the Russian take, we speak to Mikhail Komin, a visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and EUobserver contributor. Later in the episode, we head out to the cool-kid streets of Berlin’s Neukölln district, where the people who brought you DiEM25 are gathering signatures to get on the ballot for June’s European elections. We talk to the aspiring party’s would-be Spitzenkandidat (lead candidate), Karin de Rigo, about what’s happened to the left and why she thinks her party can do better.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

PS: The clip of music used is by Dinos Bouzanis et al., performed live at Cafe Karanfil in Neukölln.

Correction #1: Due to a note-reading error while recording, we mistakenly called Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra instead the name of the area he comes from — Masafer Yatta. We apologize for the hasty oversight.

Correction #2: Due to conflicting definitions of “party” and “movement,” it is important to distinguish the difference between MERA25 and DiEM25. The best way to do that is to let the groups speak for themselves, which are linked to above.

Clarification: The interview with Mikhail was recorded Monday, Feb. 26. We spoke to Karin on Tuesday, Feb. 27. Events and details may have changed between recording on Wednesday, Feb. 28, and when you listen to the episode.

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback. Facts matter.

The Munich Security Conference celebrated its diamond jubilee last weekend. A who’s who of global security and foreign affairs elite gathered for three days of panels, receptions, and sideline talks that shape larger events as much as they reveal something about them. Ian Bremmer, founder of the Eurasia Group, was one of the many insiders to take part in the MSC. He joins us to offer a few of his takeaways of a security conference happening in increasingly insecure times.

News of the death of Alexei Navalny set the mood for the conference. While expressions of condolences came easily, the harder task will be what policymakers mean when they say they will hold Russia “accountable.” Anton Shekhovtsov, an EUobserver contributor, shares his thoughts on Russia after Navalny.

We’ve also got a wrap of some of the major headlines to happen this week, including an EU contribution to a Red Sea naval operation, increasing impatience with Israel, and the latest in the march towards European parliament elections.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland.

“Strategic autonomy” is the buzzword that seems will neither go away nor come to fruition. The European Union has ample reason to get its security ducks in a row, and didn’t need former and maybe future President Donald Trump for a reminder. But there’s no stopping Trump. His latest loudmouth remarks on NATO members not pulling their weight has the transatlantic alliance once again in damage-control mode.

For what that and other foreign policy fires mean for the EU, we chat with EUObserver’s Andrew Rettman. He also gives us a rundown on the race for the bloc’s top jobs that will be up for grabs come parliamentary elections in June. You can read his latest about that here.

When it comes to Trump, of course, it’s often less about what he says than how he says it. His views on foreigners and immigrants are well known, but it’s not like the EU’s are much more enlightened. We touch on the latest migration deal with a third country and a few other issues percolating this week.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this new venture. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and listen on a platform of your choice:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Get more of Martin Gak and William’s The 'Schland.

It’s been a busy few months since our last episode — in more ways than one. A lot has happened in the world, in Europe, and to our little podcast. After much behind-the-scenes work, we are pleased to relaunch our weekly roundup of news around and affecting Europe — this time with friends in high places.

Euroscopic is partnering with the Brussels-based, nonprofit news platform EUobserver, which has been reporting on European issues for more than two decades. It’s a perfect match at a perfect time. In addition to helping with distribution and promotion, EUO offers a wealth of human expertise that promises great interviews and insightful commentary for our episodes.

In this episode, EUO reporter Nikolaj Nielsen joins us from Brussels. He tells us a bit about his recent reporting trip to war-ravaged eastern Ukraine. He was there just as EU pols were pushing hard to get €50 billion in Ukraine aid past Hungarian obstinance.

We connect the two stories, and touch on a few other simmering issues.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this new venture. We’re excited to be here and hope you are, too.

Here we are. Again. Only this time it’s worse because the next time is always worse.

Russia can keep hammering away at Ukraine for as long as Vladimir Putin wants to. Unfortunately for Ukraine, its defense relies on pesky democratic consensus, which is far less predictable than authoritarian whim.

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If there are three issues the European Union seems unable to solve, but loves to debate, it’s migration, borders, and enlargement. All three have come together this week, and will push us into next.

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For our tenth episode, we are trying something new: LIVE. Euroscopic streamed live to YouTube on Saturday, Sept. 23. If you missed it, have a listen (or watch) back here.

Check out the menu for this episode — and do subscribe to our YouTube channel!