Talking Europe

The EU has gone through seven waves of enlargement since 1973, but there has not been one since Croatia joined in 2013. Indeed, there are not likely to be any new members in the club before 2028 – some 15 years after Croatia entered. But 2026 undeniably has momentum, and is on track to be a record year in terms of opening and closing new chapters for existing applicants. That is why our guest, EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, sees this as "the year of the enlargement."

"Montenegro, which is really the frontrunner, could finish technical negotiations at the end of the year, and then become a member in 2028," Kos says. "Albania is well on the way. Moldova is delivering better and better and, of course, also Ukraine. So these are the four frontrunners. But when we say that this is the year of the enlargement, I mean that in the nine months of this year, we have opened and closed more chapters than in any previous year in the last 25 years."

But there's a distinction between the frontrunner and the best student. Kos says that Moldova "is the best performer in my class," taking into account that it started the process much later than applicant countries in the Balkans.

Speaking of the Balkans, Kos admits that there is uneven implementation of reforms, which could lead to €330 million in EU funding shifting away from the weakest performers.

"We will see how much money we will reallocate," Kos says. "Montenegro, for instance, has a 91 percent implementation rate of reforms to date. But then we also have Bosnia and Herzegovina with a zero (rate), because their politicians are not able to ratify two important agreements which would enable us to pay the money," Kos explains. "You know, our European Union is not a charity. So in order to be able to help their economies and societies to develop, they have to deliver the reforms, and we only give the money if they are doing this."

We turn to Serbia, which has been an EU candidate since 2012, but which has had a turbulent relationship with Brussels. According to Kos, "the trust between EU member states and Serbia was broken even more with the glorification of the war criminal Ratko Mladic at his funeral, which is really unacceptable. And that's also why I cancelled my planned mission to Serbia. We can have different opinions on how fast a country should make reforms. But there is no space for the glorification of a war criminal, or for denying the genocide in Srebrenica. We expect all the EU candidates, especially those from the Western Balkans, to walk the way of reconciliation. But sometimes I have the feeling that, instead of healing the wounds of the past, leaders are rubbing salt into those wounds."

Of course, enlargement is not only about the EU's closest neighbours. While Georgia's EU bid has stalled, Armenia is increasingly eyeing EU membership as an attractive option – even though it has not formally applied.

"We are helping Armenia, especially now when Russia stopped importing many Armenian products. So we are helping Armenia to redirect its exports to the European Union. We are also in the process of visa liberalisation. This means that Armenians would be able to travel to the EU without a visa. So now they have to align a lot of legislation, and they are doing great work. I'm full of admiration for the people of Armenia. It is not easy but, with the result of the last parliamentary elections, they have clearly shown that they want to be on the European path." 

It has been called Europe's disaster year. 2026 has seen more than 30,000 excess deaths linked to heatwaves, along with mega wildfires, nuclear power plants having to shut down, gas plants under pressure, droughts reducing hydropower generation from rivers and wild fluctuations in electricity prices, not to mention major disruptions to crops and farming in general.

So is the EU adapting effectively to the new normal of climate breakdown? And are the plans announced by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on a "heatwave plan" and related measures credible? We put the question to two MEPs.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero and Agnès Le Cossec

 

Ireland is managing a jam-packed agenda as the current holder of the rotating presidency of the EU. We caught up with the country’s Minister of State for European Affairs, Thomas Byrne, who was in Strasbourg for the 2026 State of the Union speech and debate with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. We discussed key points from that address, such as a proposed ban on social media access for children, which Ireland is keen to push forward with during its EU presidency.

On talks coming up on the 2028-2034 EU budget, Byrne says that Ireland is ideally positioned to be a broker because, while it is now a net contributor to the budget, "we were until relatively recently a net recipient of EU funds, so we’ve seen both sides of the picture."

"We tend to be quite pragmatic about all of this," Byrne says.

 

Programme produced by Perrine Desplats, Florine Hausfater and Agnès Le Cossec.

In this episode, we debrief one of the key annual events in the EU calendar: the State of the Union speech. It was Ursula von der Leyen’s sixth such address as President of the European Commission, and the second State of the Union speech of her second mandate.

We home in on the key innovations since the 2026 address: a potential associate membership for Canada with the European Union, a proposed ban on social media use for children and an as-yet vague ‘emergency framework’ to deal with Ceuta-like migrant crises.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats, Florine Hausfater and Agnès Le Cossec

 

"European strategic autonomy" is a buzz phrase in Brussels and in EU capitals these days. What does it mean for space policy? That was one of the central points that we raised with the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Luc Frieden, during his visit to Paris for the International Space Summit hosted by the French government on September 9 and 10. Major American aerospace companies were noticeably absent from the summit while the feud between Brussels and the Trump administration continues.

We began by talking about the far-right breakthrough in Germany – the AfD’s victory in the Saxony-Anhalt regional election at the beginning of September – a political earthquake that sent tremors right across the EU.

"Of course, we live in democracies, so it is for the people of the respective (EU) countries to vote for their leaders, and I am a very strong supporter of democratic elections," Frieden said. "Yet at the same time, people should realise what would happen if we didn’t have Europe. Europe is the answer to the disaster of the last century. We shouldn't forget the lessons of history. Nationalism, discrimination of minorities, of Jews and other minorities, led to the Second World War." 

Frieden continued: "The consequence (of far-right election wins) is that those in the political centre to which I belong must show that they can still achieve the promise of Europe. I want to make sure that tomorrow Europe remains a continent of peace. But peace is not the only thing. We need to have prosperity; this big market where products that are produced in one country can be sold in another country. This is the promise that is making the lives of people better."

We asked if it was a blow to the EU’s image that US aerospace companies such as SpaceX stayed away from the international space summit hosted by the French government, reportedly because of pressure from the Trump administration.

"Strategic autonomy means the freedom to decide for yourself. But deciding for yourself, including in space, does not mean that you exclude all the others. It doesn’t mean that you isolate yourself," Frieden explained. "As Europeans, we can be proud of what we have achieved with our universities, our research centres, our companies. We have strong companies that are building rockets; that are building satellites. And we should continue with quantum technology, where we use satellites to communicate between continents. My country is playing a leading role on that. All this is necessary. But America is and remains our friend. And on many occasions, we need their technology."

Skeptical that the US does not see cooperation with Europe that way, we recalled that the EU was again sidelined from the US diplomatic efforts over Ukraine in early September.

Frieden responded: "On Ukraine, Europe cannot be a mediator because Europe is clearly on the side of Ukraine," Frieden responded. "We are supporting Ukraine because what is at stake is much more than just those provinces in the east of Ukraine. It's about the fundamental principle in which we strongly believe that borders cannot be changed by force. And therefore, every effort that the United States is making to help find a solution finds the support of Europe. Now we have to interact with America so as to make sure that the voice of Europe is also heard. We obviously would like the Americans to be more inclined towards multilateralism. So this is a difficult and challenging time, but we have a lot of links with America, also in economic terms, that we need to preserve."

 

Programme produced by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Agnès Le Cossec and Florine Hausfater

In Brussels, opinion polls coming out of France have not escaped attention. Two polls see far right leader Marine Le Pen beating all her likely rivals in the French presidential election, which is set to take place in April and May of next year. 

Le Pen, the head of the far-right National Rally party, is projected to beat out the competition in a second round against far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon, as well as against mainstream candidates Raphaël Glucksmann, currently an MEP, and former prime ministers Gabriel Attal and Édouard Philippe. A European Union with Le Pen in charge in France would likely be a very different EU from the current one. We discuss with our guests at the European Parliament.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Florine Hausfater

 

Are great-power politics back, at the expense of smaller countries? In an age of strongmen, is multilateralism in retreat? Not according to Jozef Sikela. The EU Commissioner in charge of International Partnerships insists that traditional multilateralism is alive and well, especially in the EU's approach to Africa and to the Arctic. We sat down with him for an interview at the European Commission in Brussels.

Sikela notes that after the "dismantling" of US development aid under the Trump administration, the EU's share "might even increase". He adds that "there is no other way round, because instability and problems on the neighbouring continent do not know borders. So if we do not help to strengthen the economies of the countries in the (African) neighbourhood, we are basically creating problems for ourselves. So I don't see this as aid. This is a geopolitical strategy. Because if we create jobs, if we create sustainable development – something where Europe is the world champion by far – we will also strengthen our resilience. This is also about multilateralism and about investing in Europe's future. We can contribute to the fight against the climate change, and we can also get the access to the mineral resources that we need for the climate and the digital transition."

So is the EU exploiting the mineral resources of African countries? Is there a kind of neo-colonialism happening?

"We work with a 360-degree approach," Sikela replies. "We talk to the government, but we also onboard the local NGOs, and civil society. For example, the Lobito corridor (linking Zambia, DR Congo and Angola): this is not just about the 1,300 kilometres of the railway. This is about the whole ecosystem. This is about the sustainable agriculture. This is about the financing of the SMEs. This is about creating the opportunities for local people along the whole route."

Sikela has been closely involved with the Arctic Forum, and with updating the EU's Arctic strategy. Was Iceland's vote not to restart accession talks with the EU a missed opportunity ?

"We respect this decision," Sikela answers. "Iceland is a very strong ally and will remain a very strong ally of the European Union. It is a member of NATO and a member of Schengen. Our approach is to let the people decide their own destiny. And this is the same approach we want to have in Greenland. We want to help Greenland to become stronger, to restructure their economy, to strengthen sustainable tourism, to invest in transit routes, in digitalisation, in connectivity. And of course to get access to the critical raw materials in this area. All this is not possible without investing in the people of Greenland because of course they should be the executors of this transformation."

Sikela sees a potential win-win in which the EU helps Arctic territories to develop and at the same time "Europe protects its own interests by partnering with the Arctic states, and also protects the infrastructure which is being built, because hybrid war is about attacking critical infrastructure".

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Florine Hausfater

"Who do I call if I want to speak to Europe?" The famous quote attributed to Henry Kissinger still resonates today. There is in fact a Mrs Europe on the world stage: Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. She is actually the sixth high representative. But ever since that post was created, rivalries between different centres of power have diluted the EU's ability to speak with one voice. We saw that recently with tensions over who should represent the EU in any potential talks with Russia.

There is now also a Franco-German idea to overhaul the EU's diplomatic service.

We discuss these issues with prominent German Green MEP Hannah Neumann and former Estonian foreign minister Urmas Paet.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Florine Hausfater

 

The European Parliament declared a climate emergency in 2019, yet the EU still appears to be caught off guard by increasingly severe heatwaves and heat domes. With temperatures this summer set to break records and expose millions of Europeans to dangerous heat, we ask whether the bloc has neglected the short-term measures needed to protect people from extreme heat.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

 

Our guest this week is Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the European Commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism. 

Cancellations, delays and unventilated trains… Europe’s recent heatwave exposed some of the weaknesses of the bloc’s rail network. Despite ageing tracks and rolling stock, EU Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas insists the system is improving.

He says the Commission has carried out an assessment to identify which parts of the network require further upgrades and which are already resilient enough to cope with increasingly extreme weather. But he acknowledges that much more investment will be needed “to make sure we are ready for what is coming, because the climate crisis is here and it’s getting worse”.

As the EU encourages Europeans to switch to more sustainable forms of transport, particularly rail, Tzitzikostas argues that the case for doing so now extends beyond climate concerns.

“It’s not only about the environment anymore. It is about the environment, of course, but it is also about our strategic independence.”

He points to the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz as an example of Europe's vulnerability to global energy shocks.

“It showed the world what it means to be dependent on third countries for energy.”

For the Commissioner, the long-term answer is to increase the production of alternative fuels within the EU.

Air travel was also hit by a surge in jet fuel prices following the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, pushing up air fares. Tzitzikostas says Europe did not face a supply shortage but a price shock.

“We don’t have an issue of supply, but we have an issue of price.”

He argues that Europe's ability to produce around 70% of the jet fuel it consumes, combined with more diversified imports, helped cushion the impact of reduced supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.

As for air fares, he expects prices to fall once a lasting agreement between the United States and Iran restores normal shipping through the Strait.

While the EU has little control over airline ticket prices, it has made progress on passengers' rights. After more than a decade of negotiations, Tzitzikostas says Europe “will finally have a set of rules for passengers’ rights that is fair, that is just, that is very supportive of the passengers.”

Among the changes, parents will be guaranteed seats next to their children at no extra cost, passengers will no longer lose the return leg of their journey if they miss the outbound flight, and airlines will have to include the cost of hand luggage in the ticket price.

For Tzitzikostas, however, the biggest achievement is greater legal clarity. “So people know what they are entitled to and how they can obtain compensation.”

The new rules are due to take effect next summer, giving airlines time to adapt.

 

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Loic Chalavon and Oihana Almandoz