The European Republic

What makes someone leave a peaceful life in Spain and voluntarily move to a country at war? What happens when you stop watching a war from afar — and decide to move closer to it? How does one adapt to living under the “Russian Weather” of Drones and Missiles?

In Episode 28 of The European Republic, Nikodem Skrobisz speaks again with Carlos Zapata-Carratalá — a mathematician and researcher who has now done exactly that.

His first night began with ballistic missiles. What followed: evacuated trains with drones circling overhead, an interview with the mayor of Kharkiv in his bunker, and a drone commander who explained Russian tactics through StarCraft. Carlos shares why life in Ukraine goes on, and why Europe should be preparing for what could come next.

Shownotes:

Support Carlos’ Fundraiser: https://4fund.com/rr7a3j

Follow Carlos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UmbralEuropa

Follow Carlos on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zapatacarratala/

Carlos on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlos-zapata-carratal%C3%A1-b068b51b4/

The First Interview with Carlos: https://nikodemskrobisz.substack.com/p/carlos-zapata-carratala-mathematical

Study on Happiness in Ukraine: https://www.kiis.com.ua/?cat=reports&id=1631&lang=eng&page=1&t=81

Kyiv Independent: https://kyivindependent.com/how-faith-survives-the-war-in-ukraines-donbas/

CIA warning of Russian Drone Threat to Southern Europe: https://www.euronews.com/2026/09/24/what-we-know-about-cia-warning-of-russian-drone-threat-to-southern-europe

Operation Spiderweb: https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/ukraine-stages-major-attack-russian-aircraft-with-drones-security-official-says-2025-06-01/

Operation Vivaldi: https://kyivindependent.com/analysis-through-the-fog-of-war-ukraine-goes-on-operation-vivaldi-counterattack-near-lyman/

Timestamps:

Chapters00:00 Intro: from Spain to Kyiv01:31 Why Carlos moved to Ukraine04:01 The fundraiser for the front11:28 Road trip across a borderless Europe20:00 First night: ballistic missiles over Kyiv26:03 How Kyiv lives with the threat44:33 Life satisfaction and resilience56:42 Kharkiv: meeting the mayor in his bunker1:12:08 Commander Stitch and the Zerg rush1:25:32 Is Ukraine a preparation for something bigger?1:29:11 What if Russia's hybrid war comes to Western Europe?1:39:14 What we need to pay attention to1:46:53 What's next for Carlos

In Episode 27 Anton Bladosz-Jensen, better known as the Eurofederalist YouTuber The Polish Dane, returns to The European Republic. Four months after appearing in our very first episode, Anton joins our host Nikodem Skrobisz again to talk about memefying european federalism, the rapid growth of First Domino, the rise of a new generation of Eurofederalist creators, and why memes and internet culture may matter more for Europe’s political future than traditional institutions realize. Also: This episode serves as the official announcement, that The European Republic is now an official First Domino Affiliate Partner.

We discuss how his new eurofederalist meta-movement First Domino grew from a small Gen Z driven Discord community into a broader Eurofederalist network, the challenge of bringing together people from across the political spectrum, and whether European federalism can move from a niche idea into the political mainstream. From there, the conversation goes much further: liberalism and political identity, religion and meaning, Russia and Europe’s security crisis, America’s changing role in the world, Canada and Europe, world government, technological progress, space colonization — and why small groups of highly committed people can sometimes change history and why Italian cuisine is somewhat overrated.

A wide-ranging and occasionally unhinged conversation about politics, culture, philosophy and the future of Europe.

Shownotes:

The Polish Dane: https://www.youtube.com/@PolishDane

First Domino: https://firstdomino.eu/

First Domino Discord: https://discord.com/invite/yusaMQsDpc

Astra Europa: https://astraeuropa.eu/

YouTube Live Premier:

Books mentioned:

Time for a European federation by Yannis Karamitsios

The Owned Continent by Dave Keating

The Road to Somewhere by David Goodhart

My Socials:Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikodem_skrobisz/ Connect with me on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nikodem-skrobisz Follow me on reddit for ragebait: https://www.reddit.com/user/nikodem_skrobisz/Follow me on X for occasional ragebait: https://x.com/nikodem_jsFollow me on Red Chinese Instagram: https://tiktok.com/@nikodem_skrobisz \\ First Domino Movement //// First Domino is a European Federalist movement suited for all ideological leanings of the world except for Authoritarianism. 💬 Discord – https://discord.com/invite/yusaMQsDpc 🌐 Official Website – https://firstdomino.eu/

Europeans have woken up to the danger of disunity and dependence on the USA. But: They still haven’t gotten out of bed yet.

In Episode 26 of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz talks with Brussels based journalist Dave Keating - an American who became European by choice and author of the book The Owned Continent: How to free Europe from American military, economic and cultural dependence.

They discuss why Canada has confronted its dependence on the US while Europe still struggles to do so; why “USA” chants in the European Parliament are now a thing of the far right and a sign of a remarkable political realignment; the current debate over Canada and EU “associate membership”; what a European civic nationalism could look like; why Europe’s best talent still heads to America; and why Dave believes only dramatic political change can prevent Europe from becoming a vassal of Washington, Moscow and Beijing.

Shownotes:

Public opinion in Europe shifting against the USA: https://ecfr.eu/publication/how-trump-is-making-china-great-again-and-what-it-means-for-europe/

and https://ecfr.eu/publication/home-alone-europeans-are-ready-to-defend-themselves/

The Owned Continent official website: https://theownedcontinent.eu/

Dave Keating Website: https://www.davekeating.net/

Follow Dave Keating on his Substack Gulf Stream Blues:

More Europeans know who the mayor of New York is, then who is the head of government of their neighboring country. Europe consumes American media, American politics and increasingly American polarization. What would it take to build a genuinely European public sphere of our own?

In episode 25 of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz is joined for the first time by three guests at once: Karsten Skjellerup, Anders Stistrup and Jørn Sanne-Wander, the Danish hosts of the Brave Old World podcast — the self-described “angry Europeans” who think the continent has outsourced its own political conversation to the United States. We delve into a wide-ranging conversation about European media, algorithms and political polarization, European identity, federalism, sovereignty and the giving Europe a vision of a future people can actually can believe in. From Brave New World and AI slop to Trump, political streamers and the European Dream, we ask how Europe can stop merely reacting to the world — and start shaping it.

The reddit post announcing the launch of the Old Brave World podcast: https://www.reddit.com/r/EuropeanFederalists/comments/1usi4cm/we_missed_political_commentary_in_english_viewing/

The Brave Old Word Podcast by the angry europeans on Spotify:

The Brave Old World Podcast by the angry europeans on Apple Podcast:

Europe has the talent, capital and industrial base to compete with the US and China — so why does it still make building companies so unnecessarily hard?

In Episode 24 of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz talks with Marvin Baumann, investor at Prototype and one of the core team members behind the EU Inc. initiative, about fixing Europe’s fragmented startup ecosystem — and the much bigger vision beyond it. From EU Inc. and European federalism to robotics, brain drain, high-agency culture and Euromaxxing, this is a conversation about building a Europe that is richer, more ambitious, more technologically advanced and more optimistic.

Learn more about EU Inc: https://www.eu-inc.org/

Marvin’s Eurofuturism Essay: https://baumann.vc/blog/eurofuturism

Protoype Capital: https://www.prototypecap.com/

Europropaganda Merch Shop von Prototype: https://prototype-shop.com/

Dealroom on European-founded unicorns: https://dealroom.co/resources/european-diaspora-index-founder-flows/

American Braindrain Pitch: https://www.rebuilding.tech/

China being the largest economy in the world until the end of the 19th century: https://www.rug.nl/ggdc/historicaldevelopment/maddison/releases/maddison-project-database-2023

—

Find Marvin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marvin-baumann/

Follow Marvin on X: https://x.com/MarvinTBaumann/

Subscribe to Marvin on Substack:

In the 23rd episode of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz talks with Marijn Markus — AI lead and data scientist at Capgemini, LinkedIn Influencer, commentator on Ukraine, disinformation and hybrid warfare, and volunteer delivering aid directly into Ukraine.Fresh from his fourth trip to Ukraine, Marijn explains how the country has become the laboratory of modern warfare: autonomous drones and interceptors evolving in weeks; timescales that European militaries struggle to match. But the war is not contained to Ukraine alone: We discuss Russia’s hybrid attacks on Europe, the drone threat, AI-generated propaganda and bot networks, foreign interference in European politics, Europe’s dependence on the United States, and what genuine European strategic sovereignty would require.The conversation ultimately turns to a darker question: are we already living through the opening stages of World War III — and, if so, what should Europeans actually do about it?----Note: At one point Marijn speaks of the Republic of Tuva (Tuvia) having massive diamond mines - but the diamond mines are in Sakha (Yakutia) and Arkhangelsk.Follow Marijn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marijnmarkus/ Follow Marijn on Substack: https://datadronesdisinfo.substack.com/---

In the 22nd episode of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz speaks with Georgian political analyst and civic activist Mariami Japaridze about Georgia’s fight for freedom, its European future, and the growing confrontation between democracy and Russian authoritarian influence.

Few countries illustrate Europe’s geopolitical vulnerability as clearly as Georgia. Long before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Georgia had already experienced military aggression, occupation, disinformation and hybrid warfare. Today, the country is again at a crossroads: a deeply pro-European society is confronting an increasingly authoritarian government, while Russia remains a constant force in the background.

Mariami brings both analytical expertise and first-hand experience to the conversation. She explains how Georgia became already in the 2000s a testing ground for Russian hybrid warfare strategies later seen elsewhere in Europe like in Ukraine 2014, what has kept the protest movement alive despite growing repression, and why the struggle over Georgia is about much more than one country’s domestic politics. The episode also raises a broader question for Europe: how seriously is the European Union prepared to defend democratic forces in countries that are still fighting to become part of it?

Watch the ARTE documentary on the South Caucasus featuring Mariami: https://www.arte.tv/de/videos/122762-008-A/tracks-east/

Follow Mariami on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meomari_japara/

Thumbnail Picture shot by Tornike Shengelia

In the 21st episode of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz speaks with Paul Bekaert, co-host of EU Made Simple and a former Goldmann Sachs analyst who now writes about European economics and finance on his Substack.

The conversation focus on a the topic, that today is under-discussed in the pro-European space: money. Paul explains how Europe and the United States shared a similar financial trajectory until 2008, and how the divergent regulatory responses to the great financial crsis crash left European banks constrained, European capital fragmented and European companies subsidised rather than restructured. The discussion focuses especially on liquidity — why European exchanges, clearing houses and derivatives markets remain split across national lines, why so few companies choose to IPO in Europe, and why the money that could fund European growth ends up on the Nasdaq in the United States instead.

Paul makes the case for Eurobonds, drawing on a proposal by Olivier Blanchard (PIIE) and Ángel Ubide (Citadel) on issuing joint European debt to buy back national debt, with each member state liable for its own share. The result would be lower interest rates across high-debt and low-debt countries alike, and — more importantly — a genuine European bond market that creates the fiscal space to invest in the sectors where Europe has fallen behind.

The two also discuss the German industrial crisis and the failure to embrace creative destruction, the French deficit and the limits of a growth model that ended in the 1990s, the brain drain of Europe’s most ambitious graduates to London and New York, and the cultural difference between a continent that prizes humility about work and one that rewards visible ambition.

Check out Paul’s Substack:

If you are interested in this episodes topics, you can learn more especially in this articles:

* https://bekaert.substack.com/p/the-cost-of-non-europe

* ⁠https://bekaert.substack.com/p/the-solution-to-all-of-europes-economic

* ⁠https://bekaert.substack.com/p/what-are-blue-bonds

About The European Republic

How do we build a united Europe that can defend itself, govern itself and shape the world? The European Republic Podcast aims to bring Europeans together and to explore how Europe can become a sovereign democratic power; economically, militarily, technologically and culturally.

Our host is the philosopher Nikodem Skrobisz. He discusses with guests from across the continent Paneuropeanism / European Federalism, the European Union, the challenges European Democracy and Institutions face and how we can make Europe more united, prosperous and free.

Substack: https://nikodemskrobisz.substack.com

In Episode 20 of The European Republic, Nikodem Skrobisz speaks with Dr. Benjamin Wolba, co-founder of the European Defense Tech Hub (EDTH), one of Europe’s largest and fastest-growing defence innovation networks.

Benjamin says he came to defence almost by accident. A theoretical physicist who founded a publishing house and later worked in venture capital, he belonged to a generation in Germany raised to believe that history had ended and that war was a thing of the past. In 2024, he and his co-founder Jonathan organised a defence-tech hackathon in Munich as a one-off. Two years later, EDTH has grown into an international network running dozens of hackathons and expanding also outside Europe to allied democracies like Australia, Taiwan, Canada and Japan.

Tune in to hear what Benjamin has learned from building EDTH across Europe and Ukraine, what makes defence innovation actually work in the real world, and why he believes Europe has an enormous opportunity to build a faster, more ambitious and globally competitive defence ecosystem. We also explore how the funnel from hackathons to startups to deployed tech works; and about the new generation of founders reshaping European defense. Also: How the battlefield of the future might look like, where the most exciting innovations are emerging, and how anyone with the right ideas and skills can help shape it.

Ben’s website: https://benjaminwolba.com/

Sign up to the EDTH Festival in Berlin August 2026: https://eurodefense.tech/festival/

The upcoming Hackathons by the EDTH: https://events.eurodefense.tech/

In the 19th episode of The European Republic, our host Nikodem Skrobisz speaks with Felix Hosse, entrepreneur, long-time liberty activist and CEO of Push To Leave. Push To Leave is an app that lets you as a consumer scan a barcode and instantly see whether the company behind the product is still doing business in or with Russia. Felix left Germany for Kyiv, where he now lives and works, and his organisation was placed on Russia’s list of “undesirable organisations” in December 2025.

In the episode we discuss how his approach works, how aggregated boycott data moves the burden of proof, so that companies must justify staying in Russia rather than justify leaving. Felix argues that the wave of corporate exits from Russia is not over, that firms still betting on a post-war return are underestimating the risk of expropriation.

The second half turns to culture and self-understanding. Nikodem and Felix discuss why German and Polish readings of Russia diverge so sharply, why hierarchy and humiliation explain more about Russian strategy than Western cost-benefit logic does, and how Soviet legacies still shape post-communist societies.

Felix also tells the story of his own path from Students for Liberty to founding a think tank, to aid convoys in 2022, to building software in Kyiv — including an approach from RT Germany, and a visit to the Irpin and Bucha cemetery that he describes as the experience that changed everything.

Push To Leave: https://www.pushtoleave.org/

Felix Hosse: https://www.linkedin.com/in/felix-hosse/