Brussels Playbook Podcast

Brussels may have entered summer mode, but one of the first big political moments everyone will be watching when they return to work is Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address in September. And officials still at their desks are scrambling to make sure the she has something to say.

Hosts Zoya Sheftalovich and Sarah Wheaton discuss some of the policy areas von der Leyen might want to emphasize ... and others she may want to avoid.

Next, as the EU’s AI Office gains sweeping new powers to scrutinize the companies behind systems like ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, we explain why this move is bigger than just than another piece of tech regulation.

Plus: Industrial chicken farms might be accelerating the spread of a diarrhea-causing bacteria. But what does that mean if you’re an avid consumer of poultry?

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Poland’s once-dominant Law and Justice party has split, with former PM Mateusz Morawiecki breaking with longtime leader Jarosław Kaczyński and preparing to build a rival force on the right. Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart examine whether the rupture offers current PM Donald Tusk a lifeline ahead of the 2027 election — and what it means in Brussels, where Morawiecki leads the European Conservatives and Reformists party.

They also look at plans to close Belgium’s Charleroi Airport for several months in 2028, leaving more than 10 million annual passengers, thousands of workers and Ryanair up in the air.

Plus: As Montenegro moves closer to EU membership, Brussels prepares to add Montenegrin as the bloc’s 25th official language.

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Wildfires raging across France and Spain have forced more than 300,000 people from their homes and stretched national firefighting services to their limits. Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart look at how the EU is helping through its Civil Protection Mechanism and rescEU emergency reserve — and why Brussels says that even dozens more firefighting planes would not be enough without much greater investment in prevention.

Then, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy heads to Washington amid signs that U.S. President Donald Trump and parts of the MAGA movement may be warming towards Kyiv. But will the apparent change of heart translate into sanctions against Russia and concrete military support?

Plus: Could antibodies produced by llamas provide farmers with a safer alternative to chemical pesticides?Want to get in touch? Send us a message or voice note to our WhatsApp here or at +32 491 05 06 29.
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Icelanders begin voting on whether to restart accession talks with the European Union, reopening a debate shaped by security fears, economic uncertainty and the question of who controls the country’s fishing waters.

Zoya Sheftalovich and Kathryn Carlson also examine Donald Trump’s threat of new tariffs after the EU fined Google €890 million, and what that could mean for the fragile Turnberry trade deal.

Plus: Beethoven, Marie Skłodowska-Curie or a kingfisher? Europeans get a say on the next generation of euro banknotes. Which would you choose? Send us a message or voice note to our WhatsApp here or at +32 491 05 06 29.
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He’s the seventh British prime minister to walk through the famous black door of Number 10 Downing Street since the Brexit vote 10 years ago. Can Andy Burnham refresh relations with Europe and rescue a reset with Brussels that feels like it has been kicked into the long grass?

Host Anne McElvoy talks to two guests who know the knotty relationship between Britain and the European Union. Sylvie Boulard was France’s defense minister in 2017. She was previously an MEP who joined Emmanuel Macron’s En Marche party and advised him on the fallout from Brexit.

Sir Simon Fraser led Britain’s Foreign Office between 2010 and 2015. He knows his way around Brussels, having served as Peter Mandelson’s chef du Cabinet when he was EU trade commissioner  and held a senior position at the British Embassy in Paris. Now he leads the business consultancy Flint Global, where he worked with James Purnell — who’s just become Andy Burnham’s chief of staff.  

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