EU Confidential
EU Confidential is a weekly European news and politics podcast published every Friday by POLITICO Europe. Each 30-minute episode features POLITICO’s analysis of the top stories driving EU politics, as well as notable guests shaping European policy and deep-dive stories from around the Continent. It’s hosted by Sarah Wheaton, POLITICO’s chief policy correspondent, who is joined by reporters from around Europe. Discover our show notes for EU Confidential here: https://www.politico.eu/eu-confidential-podcast/
Episodes
June 19, 2025 • 45 mins
As NATO leaders prepare to endorse a dramatic defense spending hike, Europe faces a reckoning: Where will the money come from — and will new tanks mean cuts to pensions?
Host Sarah Wheaton speaks with Michelle Haas, a defense analyst at Ghent University and an associate fellow at the Egmont Institute, about how the proposed 5 percent target is landing across the continent — and how countries are planning to fund the military build...
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June 12, 2025 • 42 mins
Bulgaria’s big step toward using the euro is a victory for European unity — but the country itself isn’t united on whether joining the common currency is a good idea. And if Sofia is actually jumping the gun, the risks to the whole eurozone are dire.
Izabella Kaminska, POLITICO senior editor and finance expert, joins host Sarah Wheaton to unpack the pros and cons of ditching the lev for both Sofia and Brussels
Then, Gabrielius La...
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June 5, 2025 • 40 mins
Trump is finally facing some resistance. Can Europe seize the moment?
This week on EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton speaks with Swedish Member of the European Parliament Karin Karlsbro, just back from Washington, about how Brussels is reading the room in D.C. — and whether there’s any real appetite for a “beautiful trade deal” before Trump’s July tariff deadline.
We also hear from POLITICO’s news editor Josh Berlinger in Paris...
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Slaps were exchanged — some literal, some political — and suddenly Brussels isn’t just watching from the sidelines.This week on EU Confidential, we dive into a whirlwind of action across the continent: a presidential toss-up coming up this Sunday in Poland; Brussels turning up the pressure on Hungary over LGBTQ+ rights; and the EU’s rare public rebuke of Israel’s Gaza offensive. Meanwhile, Donald Trump calls Putin “crazy” — but Eur...
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May 22, 2025 • 39 mins
The EU-Israel relationship is at a tipping point.
This week on EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton breaks down how EU leaders are calling for scrutiny of a long-standing trade agreement between Brussels and Israel, as Gaza faces famine amid an ongoing Israeli military offensive.
Rym Momtaz, editor-in-chief of the Strategic Europe blog at Carnegie Europe and an expert on European and Middle Eastern politics, joins to explain wha...
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May 15, 2025 • 30 mins
Those text messages Ursula von der Leyen didn’t want to share? The EU’s top court says that’s not OK.
In a win for transparency advocates, Europe’s judges have ruled that the European Commission was wrong to hold back von der Leyen’s text exchanges with Pfizer’s CEO during vaccine contract negotiations. POLITICO health reporter Mari Eccles joins host Sarah Wheaton to unpack what the ruling means for Brussels, for von der Leyen’s l...
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May 8, 2025 • 31 mins
Europe’s political center is wobbling. Again.
In Germany, a dramatic Bundestag vote leaves new Chancellor Friedrich Merz bruised before he’s even begun. In Romania, the first round of the presidential election wipes out the mainstream — and puts a Trump-admiring provocateur on top.
EU Confidential breaks down a week of shaken coalitions, rising populists, and what they all say about the shifting balance of power in Europe.Host Sa...
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May 1, 2025 • 39 mins
After 100 days of U.S. President Donald Trump’s shock and awe, is the EU still stuck in stunned paralysis — or does it finally have a plan?
POLITICO trade reporter Camille Gijs, tech reporter Eliza Gkritsi, defense editor Jan Cienski and senior climate correspondent Karl Mathiesen join host Sarah Wheaton to unpack the EU’s response on multiple fronts.
Plus, Max Griera and Aitor Hernández-Morales break down the controversy around...
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April 24, 2025 • 44 mins
With POLITICO turning 10 and Brexit hitting 5 earlier this year, this episode of EU Confidential takes stock of two milestones that shaped Brussels — in very different ways.
Host Sarah Wheaton kicks things off with Zoya Sheftalovich, editor of Global Playbook, reflecting on POLITICO Europe’s early days and its first big scoop: Jean-Claude Juncker’s kidney stones.
Then we head to Maastricht for highlights from a debate organized by...
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April 17, 2025 • 31 mins
This week, EU Confidential is on a spring break — but with trade tensions between the U.S. and the rest of the world (China in particular) escalating, we thought it was the perfect moment to revisit a timely episode from our archives.
As Trump’s new trade war heats up, with triple-digit tariffs hitting Chinese goods and Beijing retaliating, the global trade landscape is shifting dramatically. These developments have significant im...
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April 10, 2025 • 30 mins
A tariff storm was brewing — and then, just like that, the forecast changed. Donald Trump shocked everyone by pausing his planned tariffs for 90 days (for all countries except China), throwing global markets a lifeline and leaving the EU wondering what game he’s playing.
In this episode of EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton unpacks the fallout from Trump’s trade U-turn with Josh Lipsky, senior director at the Atlantic Council’s Ge...
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April 3, 2025 • 42 mins
What do Marine Le Pen, Yanis Varoufakis and Donald Trump have in common? More than you'd think.
In this episode of EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton breaks down the court decision that could end Le Pen's political career as well as the fallout for France's far right. With POLITICO’s Clea Caulcutt giving us the latest from Paris, Yanis Varoufakis — the former Greek finance minister and leader of left-wing party Mera25 — joins to d...
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March 27, 2025 • 36 mins
Ekrem İmamoğlu, Istanbul’s mayor and the main political rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been arrested. So what is Europe doing about it? Staying pretty quiet, it seems. Mass protests are breaking out across Turkey but Brussels is keeping its counsel.
In this episode Sarah Wheaton speaks with Aslı Aydıntaşbaş, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former journalist in Turkey, about what’s really d...
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March 20, 2025 • 33 mins
A lobbying frenzy, secret perks, and now police raids. Huawei’s cozy ties in Brussels have exploded into a full-blown corruption scandal.
As the European Parliament tries to rehabilitate its image post Qatargate, lawmakers are once again at the center of allegations. With offices sealed and arrests made, there are serious questions about how deep Beijing’s influence really runs.
Host Sarah Wheaton breaks it all down with POLITICO'...
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March 13, 2025 • 39 mins
100 days in, Europe’s top leaders are facing a reality check.
Ursula von der Leyen talks about a new sense of urgency — but is she leading, or just firefighting? António Costa wants to unify the bloc — but can he keep Europe together on defense? Kaja Kallas vowed to sharpen EU foreign policy — but after a snub in Washington, is anyone listening?
With transatlantic ties fraying, host Sarah Wheaton sits down with Brussels top policy...
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March 6, 2025 • 39 mins
This week’s episode of EU Confidential comes to you from Thursday’s emergency meeting of EU leaders — the political equivalent of sobbing into your pillow on a sleepless night. The reason for those tears: America and Europe just broke up.
POLITICO’s Clea Caulcutt gives us a quick update on European Council talks on how to bolster defense spending and further support Ukraine. We then step back for a more nuanced discussion: What do...
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February 27, 2025 • 41 mins
Germany has voted, and Friedrich Merz is now the chancellor-in-waiting. But can he rise to the occasion? With Donald Trump signaling a retreat from Europe and cozying up to Vladimir Putin, the continent faces its biggest security challenge in decades. Will Merz shake off Germany’s long-standing hesitation and step up?
Host Sarah Wheaton is joined by James Angelos, POLITICO’s news editor in Berlin; Jana Puglierin, senior policy fell...
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February 20, 2025 • 38 mins
Europe suddenly has to do it all — all alone, all at once.
Still in shock after U.S. President Donald Trump’s unequivocal pivot toward Moscow, European leaders are grappling with the real possibility that they won’t be able to count on NATO — and the reality that the EU might not offer much of an alternative format.
That said, companies and capitals are looking to Brussels for a way to prop up struggling industries while not abando...
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February 13, 2025 • 39 mins
You’ve gotta hand it to Donald Trump — even when you’re expecting him to surprise you, he still surprises you.
The Unites States president once again caught Europe off guard with his plan to start Ukraine peace talks — after a call with Vladimir Putin. As the post-World War II order veers toward collapse, how many more surprises will it take before European leaders actually do something?
POLITICO’s Veronika Melkozerova, Clea Caulc...
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February 6, 2025 • 31 mins
Pasta, pizza, and Parmigiano — delicious? Absolutely. But in 2025, they’re also deeply political.
This week on EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton digs into how food has become a battleground, with POLITICO agriculture reporter Alessandro Ford explaining how Italy’s far-right — and politicians across Europe — are using the Mediterranean diet to push back against Brussels. From Nutri-Score to climate policies, we unpack the rise of ...
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