Talking Europe

Romania is on NATO's eastern flank, and it is feeling the heat from drone incursions attributed to Russia, and from the Trump administration's strategic shift away from Europe. We speak to Romanian President Nicușor Dan about how his country is faring with these headwinds, and also about tough economic reforms that have put pressure on his fragile coalition government. We put it to Dan that the US decision to withdraw some US troops from Romania is part of a deliberate strategic shift away from Europe. "The United States and Europe have a lot of common interests and transatlantic relations will continue," he counters.  "Regarding the troops, there were some circular troops that were not stabilised in Romania. It was just a technical decision. It's not something to worry about. We still have around 1,000 American soldiers, especially in three very precise bases in Romania. So it's just technical." We also discuss the EU Commission's landmark SAFE (Security Action for Europe) initiative, under which Romania is the second-largest beneficiary, after Poland. "Before the Ukraine war, it was business as usual," Dan points out. "Now we have a (military) equipment plan, until 2040. The €16 billion SAFE (loan) is part of this plan. On the drone part, we have cooperation with Ukraine, which of course has experience of war. So part of the 16 billion will be for having a good response to the drone (threat)." On military investments, Dan explains that Romania "had a big military industry in Communist times. We exported everywhere: the Middle East, South America. We didn't have good management after 1989, but we still have workers, production sites and good conditions, and we hope to attract investors from the European side in order to produce." Despite Romania's continuing interest in American weapons, Dan underlines that the country "will concentrate on European equipment and try to improve our defence industry." We turn to domestic issues and the high support for the hard-right populist Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) in opinion polls. "There’s not much trust from people towards classical parties and classical policies," Dan says. "It is for that reason that we have 40 percent of Romanian people saying, 'we need something completely different'. But this does not mean that 40 percent of the Romanian population is pro-Russian or anti-European. It's just a question of trust between people and the Romanian state and the Romanian administration." Dan admits that one reason for this lack of trust is a failure to tackle corruption. Corruption is "a phenomenon that involves many people, many administrations, many parts of the administration", he says. "I am very determined to act. There must be administrative and legislative measures, and also in the judicial system. And there is a need for society to act in this direction." Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Agnès Le Cossec, Charlotte Prudhomme and Luke Brown

The European Parliament is set to adopt its negotiating mandate on Mercosur, after which talks on the final shape of a trade deal can begin. The accord with Latin American countries would create a free trade area of more than 700 million people, at a time when the EU is locked in trade conflicts with China and the US. But despite promises of safeguards for European farmers, fears of being undercut by unfair competition have not disappeared. So is this deal an unprecedented opportunity, or a threat to key economic areas in Europe? Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero and Agnès Le Cossec

With France going through major government instability and facing an alarmingly high public debt, and with Europe struggling to find its diplomatic feet as the US pursues talks to end the war in Ukraine, we speak to a seasoned political figure at the French and European level. Pierre Moscovici is the First President of the French Court of Auditors, a former EU Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, and was a minister of the economy and finance in the former Socialist government in France. Moscovici says he was "totally surprised" by the allegations that his former colleague at the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, was implicated in a procurement fraud and corruption scandal. "She's a personal friend, and a remarkable person," Moscovici says of the former EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs. "I know how much she was dedicated to what she was doing, being the Dean of the College of Europe. I think her reaction was a good one. When you are suspected, you cannot represent such an institution anymore. You need to act with exemplary conduct. But, let’s not forget – as long as you’re not condemned, you are innocent." Watch moreEU’s Mogherini charged in procurement fraud probe Moving on to the war in Ukraine, Moscovici asserts that the US has made "several mistakes" in its negotiations to end the conflict. "The first one is to treat Russia and Ukraine asymmetrically, to seem to be more on the Russian side than on the Ukrainian side, and Mr. Witkoff (President Trump’s special envoy) has shown his preferences before," Moscovici says. "And the second mistake, of course, is to bypass the Europeans. Peace cannot be done against Ukraine and peace cannot be created without Europeans. You can't build peace just with Russia." At the same time, Moscovici is adamant that, even though the EU seems to be excluded for now, the US will eventually come back to the Europeans, because "security guarantees must be made by Europeans in the end. I'm sure that the Americans want to share this burden with us, so I'm confident that they will come back to Europe because they need to. And we must be prepared for that." Read moreFrance and Germany warn US could 'betray' Ukraine in push for peace, Speigel reports Asked about public debt, Moscovici admits that there is "a French problem". He points out that, while Greece and Italy "tend to reduce their debt", the level of debt in France is "way too high". He says that "115 percent of GDP is 35 percent above the average rate of the EU, while we were in the average a few years ago. So we need to solve this problem. And that's in my role of President of the Court of Auditors. I repeat: France must regain control of its public finances in order to keep its credibility." Read moreFrench lawmakers approve taxation part of contested social security budget On the other hand, Moscovici acknowledges that "the structural problems of this country will only be solved after 2027, which is the year of the next presidential elections. We need to recover our vision, and we also need to recover a majority in the parliament. And this majority does not exist for the time being. So they are muddling through." Programme prepared by Agnès Le Cossec, Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz and Isabelle Romero

A ceasefire in Ukraine remains a distant prospect, to say nothing of an actual peace settlement. US diplomatic efforts in Moscow have become bogged down, with no compromise in sight on the fundamental issues, especially the territorial ones. Meanwhile, the EU seems to be relegated to a relatively minor diplomatic role – reacting to the Trump plan with a counter-proposal, and continuing to hold meetings of the "coalition of the willing" to help Kyiv. Our two guests agree there should be a more proactive European diplomacy on Ukraine, but they see the contents of any peace proposal very differently.  Programme prepared by Agnes Le Cossec, Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero

The EU was caught off guard when US President Donald Trump unveiled his 28-point plan for peace in Ukraine on November 21 – a document that Brussels and Kyiv see as being heavily favourable to the Kremlin. The EU has since presented a counter-proposal, but the bloc has given the impression of reacting to events rather than driving them. This after an apparent US-Russian rapprochement in Alaska last August set off alarm bells in Ukraine and in the EU. We speak to the foreign minister and deputy prime minister of Belgium, Maxime Prévot. His country is a crucial player as it holds most of the frozen Russian assets in the Euroclear depository. We ask Prévot why the EU seems to be behind the curve again. "This was already the case with the Gaza situation, unfortunately," Prévot replies. "Once again, we (the EU) are reacting to the US initiative, instead of taking the lead in finding a solution for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. Even though [Ukraine] is within the European continent! So we have the impression that the US chose the restaurant and the menu, but the bill has been paid by the Europeans." Prévot signals that Belgium has not changed its mind on the question of using the profits from Russian assets frozen in a securities depository in Belgium – known as Euroclear – despite pressure from the European Commission. "Belgium has explained that it is totally unacceptable to confiscate such sovereign assets, only based on a political decision with no judicial decision," Prévot asserts. "It could set a dangerous precedent with high legal, financial and systemic risks for all of us in Europe, and maybe with negative effects for the eurozone." He continues: "We consider that it is a better option to maintain [the assets] frozen, and to use classic loan processes for providing Ukraine with the needed financial support." Read moreEurope debates the future of Russia’s frozen assets Prévot acknowledges that "there is an urgency for providing financial support to Ukraine", but he insists any solution must involve EU member states sharing the financial commitment and any risks. "We need not only a coalition of the willing, but also a coalition of the billing," he sums up. Prévot has just returned from an EU-Africa summit in Angola, and he gave us his takeaway from the event. "Belgium has been involved in the African continent for a long time, not only for historical reasons but also by conviction," he explains. "We consider that the African continent will have a really impressive economic development in the coming decades, and also a demographic boom. The EU and Africa have common challenges related to climate change, to prosperity, to health issues and to security matters. So it means that we need to rebuild a new link of trust between European countries and African ones; and that also means not using the resources of African countries like a vampire." Prévot adds that the EU "must be more involved in trying to resolve conflicts (in Africa), otherwise the US will once again take the lead and the EU will be only at the backstage. It's really important for the credibility of the EU to be paying more attention to conflict zones and to try to find humanitarian solutions. We have seen with the Gaza issue that the EU was not capable of taking a strong position because it was not possible to have unanimity between the 27 countries. But we absolutely must not copy and paste such an attitude to other parts of the world, and certainly not in Africa." Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero.

Wealth inequality is on the rise around the world and right here in Europe. The wealthiest 5 percent of the population in the Eurozone control 45 percent of net household wealth. Just three countries on the continent have imposed a tax on individual net wealth: Norway, Switzerland and EU member state Spain.  Nearly eight years on from French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to cut taxes on rich individuals and companies, a debate has been rekindled in France, thanks to economist Gabriel Zucman, nicknamed "the billionaire's nightmare" by French daily Le Monde. Zucman has been advocating for a 2 percent annual tax on households that own more than €100 million in assets. Read moreFrance's National Assembly rejects proposals for taxing the ultra-wealthy For supporters, it represents tax justice at a time when European member states are being called to spend more on security and defence. Opponents fear it could it instead drive away Europe's wealthiest taxpayers and businesses. We do the maths with two MEPs at the European Parliament in Brussels. Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero.

“Everyone has a role to play”, those are the words of today’s guest Carl-Oskar Bohlin, Sweden’s first minister for civil defence since 1947. Bohlin has become a key figure in Sweden’s evolving security landscape, as threats against Europe are rapidly increasing by the day. Grey zone aggression – covert actions that fall short of open military conflict – is on the rise, and countries along Russia’s eastern flank are on the frontline: from cyber attacks, disinformation and drone sightings. As the war in Ukraine is set to enter its fourth year and with no end in sight, countries like Sweden are urging European allies to take civilian preparedness seriously. Carl-Oskar Bohlin speaks to us during a visit to Paris.    Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Charlotte Prudhomme and Renaud Lefort

As 2025 draws to a close, the European continent is facing the most pressing of problems: how to raise financial support for Ukraine, almost four years into Russia’s full-blown invasion. Kyiv’s financial resilience is eroding and thanks to an unpredictable Trump administration questioning the cost of collective defence, Europe is now faced with shouldering the burden. EU Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen warned this week that urgent measures are needed to fill Ukraine’s €135 billion budget shortfall for the next two years. One option would be tapping €185 billion in frozen Russian assets –a move that has faced opposition from the likes of Belgium, where most of the assets are located. If no agreement is made among member states before the end of the year, it could have disastrous consequences. Von Der Leyen has stressed that what happens in Ukraine is fundamental not only to the country’s survival but to Europe’s future. We debate the future of financing Ukraine with our guests at the European Parliament in Brussels.   Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats, Agnès Le Cossec and Isabelle Romero  

Denmark's rotating presidency of the EU has been juggling a lot of difficult political balls: the climate negotiations ahead of the COP30 in Brazil, the "simplification" omnibuses that have run into political battles in the European Parliament, and much else. We travel to Copenhagen to talk to Denmark’s Minister for European Affairs, Marie Bjerre, about how the presidency is going, and how the small country is dealing with the big geopolitical headwinds blowing into Denmark. Bjerre says that "there has been a change of mindset, because we used to be a little bit more critical of the EU with further integration, more EU legislation. But the attitude towards the EU [in Denmark] has really changed quite dramatically. And this has absolutely to do with the new geopolitical reality that we are faced with. We see war on our continent, war in Ukraine, a more aggressive Russia, and also new political winds blowing from the US. And in such a situation, Europe has to be much stronger. Europe has to be able to defend itself, and therefore Denmark also has to contribute to that." Denmark is a committed supporter of Ukraine, and we ask Bjerre how the Danish EU presidency is dealing with the fact that the Hungarian government is blocking further moves to have Ukraine join the EU. "There's absolutely the possibility of making progress, and we are actually progressing," Bjerre replies. "Yes, Hungary is blocking so we can't formally open the negotiation clusters. But we're working on the technical level. During our (EU) presidency, we have managed to frontload the technical work, meaning that when Hungary is not blocking any more, then we will be capable of opening the negotiation clusters and hopefully also be able to close them quite fast afterwards, because the Ukrainians are working on the reforms," she explains. Bjerre highlights an agreement that was reached during the Danish presidency on mobile phone roaming in the EU for Ukrainians. "A lot of us remember how expensive it was when we used our phone going to France from Denmark," she says. "But today it's cheap and from 1st of January it will be cheap for the Ukrainians as well. It sounds like a small agreement, but it goes to the fact that Ukrainians are getting closer to the EU." Denmark is considered to be a pioneer in the renewable energy transition in Europe, especially on wind power. Bjerre hints that Denmark was disappointed at the climate target that the EU agreed ahead of the COP30 summit in Brazil.  "From a purely Danish perspective, we would have liked this agreement to look a little bit different," Bjerre admits. "We are very ambitious on the climate agenda. We're not hiding that. We are not going to use fossil fuels in the future. And we believe that developing new green technologies is linked with competitiveness." Bjerre also links competitiveness with the EU's "simplification agenda". "Right now it's impossible for me as a politician to visit a Danish company without them saying that they are burdened with too many rules," she states. "Things are too bureaucratic. We are asking them for too many reporting requirements. The Draghi report from last year said it quite clearly: we are overregulating in the EU; it's too burdensome to do business in the EU. And therefore simplification is a key priority for our presidency. And luckily we already closed two agreements on this simplification. But the agreement on sustainability is of course also key for us to close." Will the simplification of sustainability rules undermine climate goals, though? Is the watering down of reporting requirements not a problem? "I think we have to think about the green transition in a different way," Bjerre answers." We're not necessarily getting more green transition when we're reporting about it. It's also about innovation and letting companies thrive and innovate." We turn to the thorny subject of migration, and the notion of "return hubs" for migrants outside EU borders, which has recently run into legal difficulties. Bjerre confirms that "return hubs" are indeed still an idea. "Denmark has had a strict immigration policy for more than 25 years, and we are proud of that. For many years, I think we were not looked upon as a country for inspiration when it came to our immigration policy, but we are that today. Many countries realise that we need to have better control of migration and better control of sending irregular migrants back, and a part of that is building receiving centres or returning hubs. We realise that it’s difficult to do this as one single country, and that's why we're advocating that these hubs should be made together in [the] EU." Programe prepared by Charlotte Prudhomme, Agnès Le Cossec, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

Montenegro is considered to be one of the frontrunners to join the European Union, and it hopes to enter the bloc and the eurozone in 2028. The Western Balkans country of around 620,000 people began accession talks in 2012. Six years earlier, in 2006, it had emerged as an independent state after the end of the former Union of Serbia and Montenegro. We host the country's president, Jakov Milatović. He is a young pro-European reformer who says he is determined to follow the Euro-Atlantic path. Milatović is an Oxford-trained economist and was minister of economic development before being elected president of Montenegro in 2023. We begin with EU enlargement, a key issue in the region. "The enlargement of the EU was always an investment in stability and prosperity, not only of the parts where the EU enlarged, but also of Europe as a continent as a whole," Milatović says. "Now, I believe it's the same story with the Western Balkans. If Europe doesn't grasp this opportunity and take the moment, somebody else will try to increase its power in the region. And this is what we are already seeing through different cyber threats and disinformation that are coming from the third parties. And so I am very clear, I do want to see a more engaged Europe in the Balkans." What sort of help would he like from the EU? "Technical help, so that we can make our institutions more resilient in order to be able to fight hybrid threats more effectively," Milatović answers. "But in the long run, we obviously need to work a lot on media literacy, of our young people especially, as well as on social cohesion." Milatović touts the strides that his country has made towards EU membership. "Montenegro is the only candidate country that has opened all the [negotiating] chapters. And we were also able to close a number of them," he explains. "Montenegro is fully aligning its foreign and security policy with the one of the EU. So everything, literally everything that is decided by the EU Council, Montenegro takes on board. Montenegro is also part of NATO and that's very important given the current geopolitical situation. You mentioned the eurozone. Montenegro has unilaterally adopted the euro a while ago. And in that regard, we are also trying to fulfil all the necessary criteria. Also, in comparison to the other countries of the region, Montenegro doesn't have any major open issues with its neighbours. So we would not be bringing problems to the club." Milatović admits, though, that organised crime continues to be a significant issue, and an obstacle on the path to Montenegro's EU accession. "This is a challenge that we are tackling together with our international partners," Milatović says. "And I believe that the French authorities played a crucial role, together with Europol and Interpol, when they dismantled the encrypted correspondence between the members of the organised crime groups. And this is the evidence which our prosecutorial system, our court system is now using to prosecute many of those people. There are people who were part of our system, of our police department, of our court system, who, instead of fighting the organised crime, were actually part of the organised crime! I do want to put an emphasis on the fact that, when I was chosen to become the president, I had a very clear mandate from the people to promote zero tolerance on organised crime and on corruption."

Multiple European countries have reported incursions into their airspace by presumed Russian drones in recent weeks and months. That is a particular concern to so-called "frontline states" of the EU and NATO. We speak to Latvia's Foreign Minister Baiba Braže about the EU's drone readiness, Russia sanctions, hybrid warfare and the issue of migrant pushbacks. Braže says her country is "at the forefront" of drone policy in the EU. "We have a very high scientific and tech base, and it is easy to do business in Latvia. So tech companies have really been quite successful," she explains. "We have huge military ranges where they can do live bombing and electronic warfare, and we also have a superb relationship with the Ukrainian military, so lots of our stuff gets tested on the battlefront in Ukraine," she goes on. Braže emphasises that in Latvia there is a "permissibility to fail environment", and says she would welcome EU Commission leadership to create more of that at the European level. "What we need is single-source, small procurement, letting them (the companies) fail, then letting them advance rapidly, taking on scientific developments and discoveries, and just being out there," Braže elaborates. "We have said to the Commission leadership, and also to French ministers, that we need that permissibility to fail, as well as speed and rapid adoption." Continuing on the drone issue, Braže takes a big-picture approach. "This is not just about the border," she says. "We also saw in the airports in Copenhagen or other places that you need to identify and detect the drones early on, because you want to understand what that is as early as possible. If you just use some radar or something, it might look like a Delta plane, not like a drone." We come to the EU's 19th package of sanctions on Russia, which targeted Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for the first time. Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia were the first EU states to stop using Russian gas. Braže is critical of countries that are continuing those imports. "We haven't gone back to any Russian [oil and gas]. And we advise the same for all the companies in Europe," Braže says. "The fact that there's quite a bit of Russian LNG imports in France, I don't think is the right message to Russia. I don't think it's right to give billions of euros from French taxpayers' money or French companies' incomes to the Russian budget from which they wage the war." We also ask Braže about reported migrant pushbacks at the Latvia-Belarus border; something that the European Court of Human Rights has held hearings on. "It became very clear what was happening on the side of Belarus; that they were gathering people flown in from different parts of the world," Braže states. "They were gathering them in the groups, bringing them to the border, and then pushing them across the border. And that was very much through a Belarus-KGB organised effort. So, I'm sorry, this is not any more an issue of asylum and migration. This is organised activity with the objective of violating our border – which is a border of the EU and NATO." But don't the migrants have rights under international humanitarian law, even if they are being used as a political weapon? "They have the right to ask for asylum in Belarus", Braže replies. "I mean, they are all in Belarus territory. They have to ask for asylum there, and it will have to be granted. Belarus should be able to do that. It's considered quite a safe country." Programme prepared by Agnès Le Cossec, Oihana Almandoz et Isabelle Romero

On the tenth anniversary of France's worst peacetime massacre, we speak to the EU's Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter. He tells us what lessons have been learned from the November 13, 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, and what is being done at the EU level to counter threats. He also warns of the need for heightened vigilance, because even though the so-called "ISIS caliphate" ended in 2019, the group has been "agile in adjusting its strategy" and is "focusing on the online environment to recruit individuals in the EU", he explains. Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz and Isabelle Romero

FRANCE 24 secured an exclusive interview with Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, at the Paris Peace Forum. At this year's edition, there was fretting about violence that undermines the international order, but also a renewed call for global cooperation. Kallas, who has been in the job for about a year after being prime minister of Estonia, tells us that her "big goal is to make Europe a geopolitical power; that we would matter on the world stage." Kallas expresses worry about the state of the global order. "I think international law is under heavy fire, if we look at what is happening in the world," she says. "We have the United Nations Charter that says that you can't attack another country, you can't attack the sovereignty or territorial integrity of another country. But yet here we are. We have many conflicts, many wars around the world. And international law is something that is really protecting the smaller countries, so that their big neighbours don’t make a step towards them.  And the majority of the world's countries are small countries. So if you think this doesn't concern you right now, then it's just a matter of time. So we really need to preserve this world order where might does not make right." Is she worried about the US retreat from its traditional global role under the Trump presidency, particularly when it comes to development aid? "If we look at the bigger picture, it is clear that United States has withdrawn its help, and all the countries in the world are behind our doors asking us to fill the void," Kallas replies. "It's clear that our taxpayers can't do that. We have many places where we are the biggest humanitarian aid donor. But there are a lot of rich countries around the world who should also shoulder the burden. So, clearly, we are trying to do our share, but we can't fill the void that America is leaving behind." There was also much focus on Africa at the Paris Peace Forum. Kallas has denounced the brutality of the paramilitary group the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan, and the ethnic cleansing of civilians there. "The situation in Sudan is unbearable and it doesn't have the attention in the media that other conflicts have," Kallas states. "What we are trying to do is to call on those parties with the weapons, the warring parties, to stop, because the human suffering is just so enormous. We are the biggest provider of humanitarian aid, but everybody should understand that for stability, for prosperity, for investments, you need peace." On a different conflict, Gaza, the EU has been notoriously split politically. But Kallas focuses on what the bloc is doing to stabilise the situation going forward. "The ceasefire was very much waited for, as was the release of hostages, but it was clear that it was the first phase," Kallas avers. "A sustainable peace requires international backing and that's why we are, of course, thinking about what we can do on our side. We have two missions working on the ground, the EUPOL COPPS (to support Palestinian police and the rule of law) and EUBAM Rafah (a border assistance mission on the Gaza-Egypt frontier). We're thinking about what more can we do to also contribute to the International Stabilisation Force." Kallas is a staunch supporter of international trade deals such as Mercosur, between the EU and Latin American countries. "If we look at the economy of Europe, then our companies definitely need markets," she says. "And Mercosur would bring the biggest free trading area of 700 million people. And I know the worries that are there in France. That's why the EU Commission has put forward new safeguards for those worries, which are very important for the farmers." For Kallas, Mercosur has a clear geopolitical imperative, because "there are other powers outside Europe that really want us to be at each other's throats, to be clashing. If we are fighting each other, we are actually weaker towards our adversaries." Asked about Ukraine and EU defence, Kallas addresses concerns among EU member states that the EU Commission might be overstepping its powers in terms of defence projects. "Actually the leadership on this is with the member states," she maintains. "The only thing that the European Union tries to do is to coordinate and put member states together, because some projects are too large for any single member state, but we can do them together." A firm supporter of Ukraine, Kallas highlights the added value that the country has for EU defence industries. "I recently visited Ukraine and the drone factories there," she says. "The innovation they are doing is very impressive, and also how fast they are able to produce drone interceptors. They have a very clear view of how it operates because they have it already in place. So we don't have to invent the wheel. We can do this and learn from their lessons." Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero and Agnès Le Cossec.

The EU Council insists that the EU must leave next month's COP30 climate summit in Brazil with a clear path forward to keeping a lid on 1.5°C of warming. But is that target already out of reach? Our guest says that the world is actually on course for 2.9°C of warming, and that the international community is failing to live up to the promise of the landmark 2015 Paris Agreement. Isabella Lövin is a prominent Green MEP, a former minister for the environment and climate in the Swedish government, a former minister for international development cooperation, and a former deputy prime minister of Sweden. Lövin lays out the challenges facing developing countries in particular, ahead of the COP30 in Belém, Brazil. "Sadly enough, we now see the US leaving the Paris Agreement for the second time and the EU not taking the leadership that it should," she states. "The US is withdrawing all the support through the Green Climate Fund. And we see many countries around the world also diminishing their development aid. And this is creating a lot of distrust from the developing countries who are very much struck by hurricanes, droughts, forest fires and all these things that we see in Europe and that we see in the United States, but they don't have the means to adapt to it." For Lövin, the pushback in some member states against the EU’s proposed carbon emissions target for 2040 is indicative of a lack of leadership. "We, the rich countries, we have developed our wealth through the burning of fossil fuels. We have a moral obligation," she insists. "We also promised to be more ambitious than the developing part of the world, and to show leadership. So it's not too much to demand from the EU that we show how we can get to minus 90 percent in carbon emissions by 2040. All the analysis that has been done by the European Commission shows that it's perfectly doable. We have all the tools that we need in terms of legislation, in terms of research and innovation. So we're the continent that can do it. We can't look to the US to do it." Sticking to the 2040 target is also in the EU's self-interest, Lövin maintains. "We see how China, which is a Communist power, has invested enormously and subsidised the development of EVs, electric vehicles and new technologies," she says. "And the EU is falling behind. We are really being outcompeted by others if we don't continue to do the Green transition. China is investing in the technology that we will have to import later, if we are not there. And we will still be dependent on imports of fossil fuels for billions and billions of euros." We ask Lövin about the big gulf that has opened up between the Greens and the Conservatives in the European Parliament, despite both groups being part of the broad pro-European coalition. "As the Greens, we're all for simplification when we're talking about excessive bureaucracy on some things like state aid rules, or some excessive reporting obligations for SMEs," Lövin answers. "But if you look at reporting for sustainability, if we're going to import products that are produced outside of Europe that have caused a lot of [carbon] emissions or use child labour, then it's not excessive reporting we're asking for. And we know that the big companies like Ikea or Volvo or big European companies, they're already prepared to do this reporting. They're not asking for deregulation on these things. But now, in this house (the EU Parliament), many of the right-wing parties and the extreme right parties, they are only talking about environmental legislation, about climate legislation. That's the only thing they want to deregulate. For companies, it's much better to have clear targets that are really long term so they know what they should invest in. I speak to many companies all the time and they say to us: 'Just tell us what we need to do and we will do it'." Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Agnès Le Cossec and Oihana Almandoz.

It was described as an unhappy marriage — and it ended in June. The four-party government in the Netherlands collapsed when far-right leader Geert Wilders pulled his PVV party out of the coalition, citing his partners’ inaction on migration and asylum issues. That breakdown led to snap parliamentary elections being called, which are due to take place on 29 October. Beyond the personalities and personal rivalries, the issues in the Dutch election reflect some of the major political battles unfolding across the EU — particularly on migration and the green transition. We debate what’s at stake with our guests. Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz and Isabelle Romero  

At a jam-packed EU summit in Brussels on 23 October, dominated by the thorny issue of using frozen Russian assets, we caught up with the Deputy Minister for European Affairs of Cyprus, Marilena Raouna. Although Belgium was at the centre of haggling over how to turn the Russian assets into a “reparation loan” to help Ukraine, it is not the only country concerned by the issue. Cyprus has frozen €1.2 billion in Russian assets. Raouna emphasises that Cyprus has “completely turned the page” on Russian money flowing through the country and that supporting Ukraine will be a “top priority” when Cyprus assumes the rotating EU presidency in January 2026. Cyprus’s historically close links with Russia notwithstanding, Raouna pledges that the Cypriot EU presidency will “take an approach of unequivocal, steadfast support for Ukraine on all fronts – political, economic and humanitarian. This is about defending core European principles, including territorial integrity and sovereignty. Cyprus is a member state of the European Union that has part of its territory under occupation by Turkey. We know first-hand what it means to have territorial integrity violated. So this will be a top priority for the Cyprus presidency,” she asserts. On the question of using frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine – the issue that dominated the EU summit – Raouna says: “There is broad support for the need to continue supporting Ukraine financially and in its defence capabilities. One of the proposals being discussed in this context is the use of the frozen Russian assets. The point we are making is that we need to ensure these proposals are legally sound, and that they are financially and economically viable for all member states.” In the event, EU leaders did not achieve a breakthrough on the issue and will revisit it at the next summit. Cyprus itself has frozen more than a billion euros in Russian assets. Raouna insists, however, that the island does not deserve the “Moscow on the Mediterranean” epithet that the media has sometimes used in reference to Russian money on the island. “There is very clear evidence that Cyprus has completely turned the page in that regard,” she states. “There are independent reports that verify this. President Christodoulides took very concrete steps when he assumed office a little over two and a half years ago. He invited a law enforcement team from the FBI to join our own teams. We have been steadfast in our support of the 19 sanctions packages, and our economy has done away completely with any Russian capital. If anything, we now have a very strong presence of American companies in Cyprus.” Being something of a bridge between Europe and the Middle East, Cyprus has been an active player in diplomacy on Gaza, and it intends to keep Gaza high on the agenda during its EU presidency. “When the war in Gaza started, we put forward the Cyprus Maritime Corridor, a humanitarian corridor which was supported by the European Union and by the United Arab Emirates, together with our partners in the region and with Israel. And this corridor is still ongoing,” Raouna says. “We’ve also put forward a six-point plan, which corresponds to a number of points in President Trump’s 20-point plan. We want to facilitate and advance its implementation, and we are now in the crucial initial phase. This is about the EU increasing its footprint in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, because these regions are inextricably linked with the security of the European Union.”     Programme prepared by Luke Brown, Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

As political and economic turmoil continues in France, we speak to the influential former EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton. A former minister of economy and finance in the French government, Breton gives us his reading of the debt situation in France, as well as of France’s current standing in the European Union. We also talk about the obstacles to a more integrated EU defence industry – something that Breton was closely involved with in the European Commission during his tenure in 2019-2024. Breton points out that France is in worse shape than Germany, despite experiencing the same problems. "We had the same subprime issues, the same debt problems, the same Covid impact," he says. "And now we are at 116 percent debt versus GDP. Germany is at 62 percent. So it means that probably something is wrong with us. And we need to be very candid and to say to our public opinion that we cannot afford to pay our social benefits [the way we used to]. And we need to discuss together how to reduce our spending." So has the political deadlock and the mounting debt hurt France's standing in the EU? "When you are a founding member of the Union like France, you need to behave by example," Breton replies. "And it's true that, since 20 years, we have not kept our commitments. In the Eurogroup, at the Ecofin, when you don't stick to your commitment, it makes you a little bit more weak when you speak to others. That's the reality. Of course it's painful, but I think it's possible to demonstrate to the rest of our partners that we will get back on track." Breton adds: "France is still a big country. Remember that we have nuclear submarines. We have nuclear aircraft carriers. We are the only ones able to carry deterrence with our nuclear weapons, which is extremely important these days." Speaking of defence, we discuss the problems facing the EU's European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP). Breton was intimately involved with EDIP's launch as EU Commissioner. "What is extremely important is that defence stays at the level of member states. This is their sovereignty and it will stay this way. And the European Commission needs to understand that," Breton states. "On the other hand, the Commission has a very important power in industry. You remember we had a big discussion about shells and calibre 155 ammunition that we wanted to deliver to Ukraine. We were manufacturing 500,000 per year, but today, because we put a programme in place, we are producing more than 2 million per year. So are on our way to achieving what Russia is doing. This demonstrates that it's possible to work together to drastically enhance our defence industry." We ask Breton if it was a good idea for the Commission to talk about creating a "drone wall", in response to the recent presumed Russian drone incursions into European airspace. "Well, you know, in France this term reminds us of the Maginot Line (a French fortification that the German army bypassed in 1940). You can go around [a drone wall] in a car, or as an individual. So, I mean, it doesn't work this way," Breton says. "But, of course, we need to defend our airspace together. And this was already put into the EU's Strategic Compass in 2023. So we don't need to reinvent the wheel. It's already extremely clear that there are four contested spaces – airspace, space itself, cyberspace and maritime space – where we need to work together." Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

Elections in Europe are a rollercoaster these days. EU elites were relieved when the pro-EU camp won the parliamentary vote in Moldova, but the Czech legislative election turned out quite differently. Andrej Babiš, a populist and self-proclaimed Trumpist, won the ballot, staging a comeback similar to his colleague in neighbouring Slovakia, Robert Fico. Babiš’s victory is clearly a boon to Eurosceptic forces since it was he who, together with Hungary's leader Viktor Orban, set up the Patriots for Europe group in the European Parliament. But does his win have an impact on the EU's help for Ukraine? And on dealing with a more assertive Kremlin, which seems to be testing Europe with drone incursions? We put these questions to two MEPs. Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero Read more about the work of the Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (EUDS)

Moldovans have voted in what is arguably the country's most pivotal election since independence in 1991. Our guest says that there was "a big danger that pro-Russian forces might have drawn Moldova into Russia's war against Ukraine". But that danger was averted, and voters gave a clear thumbs-up to Moldova's European future and its desire to join the EU. We analyse the result of this parliamentary vote with Nicu Popescu, a former deputy prime minister and former foreign minister of Moldova.   "If you look at recent elections in Europe in the last three years, you would see that most incumbents lost in Italy, in the United Kingdom, in Germany, in Poland, in Slovakia, in the United States," Popescu points out. "People have mostly voted against incumbents. So this makes the victory of the governing team in Moldova really exceptional by European standards."  Popescu elaborates: "The levels of inflation, the economic shock of high energy costs have been bigger on Moldova than they were on Germany or France. And yet Moldovans voted this way because they want to live in a country that is democratic, European and at peace. And there was a big danger (in this election) that pro-Russian forces might have drawn Moldova into Russia's war against Ukraine."  Popescu details the hybrid warfare that Moldova has experienced – something the Kremlin dismisses as an attempt to distract attention from Europe's problems. "When you say hybrid war, for example in France or Germany, people think of disinformation on social media, and we had a lot of that in Moldova," Popescu states. "We had a lot of cyberattacks on the Central Election Commission’s critical infrastructure. All of that has been happening. But beyond that, Russians have been pumping hundreds of millions of euros into the political system, paying party activists, corrupt journalists, corrupt experts, paying for leaflets for a lot of things that are completely illegal. Russians laid out a scheme where they distributed at least 140,000 bank cards so that they can pay people for their votes. So this was a massive vote-bribing scheme."  On the recent drone incursions into EU or NATO airspace, Popescu says: "It's a message to scare the Europeans, to say, 'Don't invest in your defence. Be afraid of Russia. Don't help Ukraine, otherwise it will get worse.' Between 2008 and 2022, European leaders missed the fact that Russia is militarising, and they did not take the threat seriously. And we see the result of that today. Europe doesn't have enough means to protect its airports from drones; doesn't have enough means to have sufficient artillery shells to help Ukraine; doesn’t have enough means to keep the Russian military as far away from the rest of Europe as possible."  We ask Popescu about Moldova's EU membership process, and whether there is "enlargement fatigue" among existing EU members states.  "The cost of enlargement is a real issue, but a smaller EU would have been today at the mercy of lots of other hostile powers," he counters. "A bigger Europe is a stronger Europe, and that makes French citizens richer and live in peace. Europe consists of mostly small countries. So you add Moldova, you add Slovakia, you add Estonia, you add Portugal or Ireland, and you make Europe more peaceful."  Will problems with corruption and the judiciary hamper Moldova's EU membership? "Four years ago, when the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) came to power, Moldova was on 115th place on the Corruption Perceptions Index," Popescu replies. "In the last four years, Moldova improved by roughly 50 places. That's amazingly good progress. But it's also obvious that we need to do a lot more. There is still a lot of corruption left. And this is what people understood (in the election). They saw progress and they want a continuation of that progress."  Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Paul Guianvarc'h 

Several new portfolios have been created in the current European Commission, to reflect the EU's changing priorities. One of those is a Commissioner for the Mediterranean. This is a crucial region for the EU, as the bloc grapples with difficult issues such as migration, climate and energy. The EU wants to pursue this southern pivot by signing a Pact for the Mediterranean with North African and Middle Eastern countries. Our guest is the EU's Commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Suica. She is a Croatian centre-right politician and she held the Democracy and Demography portfolio in the first von der Leyen Commission, from 2019 to 2024. She has also been an MEP.  We begin with this year's UN General Assembly, and the growing number of EU member states that recognised a Palestinian state. "This General Assembly showed a big step forward because more than 160 countries recognised Palestine," Suica states. "And I'm sure that this somehow created new momentum, regardless of some divisions which you mentioned within the EU. We will see in the next Foreign Affairs Council what the situation is among EU member states. I think that we are still not united, but things are going in the right direction, especially now after we have this 21-point plan which was offered by President Trump to both Israel and Palestine." On the Palestine Donor Group, initially outlined by EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen in her State of the Union speech, Suica says: "We are sure that we will establish this group by the end of this year. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is interested, so we will somehow co-chair this donor group. But this is the moment to invite everyone in the world to help reconstruct Gaza, and to think about how to anticipate the situation after a ceasefire. [My] Mediterranean portfolio is not only North Africa and the Middle East, but also the Gulf countries. Without them, we cannot achieve peace and security in the region. We badly need all the Gulf countries on board." Suica insists that the new Pact for the Mediterranean, scheduled to be announced by the European Commission on October 16, will be "for the benefit of both sides of the Mediterranean, north and south, because we think that there is a lot of potential in in the Mediterranean. It's about everything. It's about the environment; keeping this area clean and not polluted. It's about trade. It's about development. It's about education. It's not only about migration. Migration is only one of the points within our strategic partnership agreements." But will this Pact not end up creaming off skilled labour from the southern Mediterranean to plug job shortages in Europe? "We don't want to create brain drain in these countries," Suica answers. "We don't want to take all their doctors, their engineers, their intellectual elite. We are putting people at the centre. It's about young people. They can help us to connect the people of the Mediterranean. This is exactly why I would like to establish a Mediterranean University, be it in Beirut, Alexandria, Fez or Barcelona." Suica was about to travel to Tunisia, a key partner for the EU, just after our interview. We asked her about the human rights abuses in that country, and whether the EU has been too soft. "With Tunisia, we always insist on transparency," she replies. "We insist on registering migrants, which is not the case at the moment. So this is something that we are working on with them, not only me, but also my colleague, Commissioner Brunner. There is space for improvement. But at the same time, if we are not there, who will be there? We don't want other players, be it Russia, be it China. We want to be there as the European Union." Demography is part of Suica's portfolio, and we touch on the declining fertility rates in the EU. "When we mention fertility and fertility rates, it's a competence of the member states, not of the European Union," Suica explains. "But we are trying to create an environment for families to thrive, to have housing, to have jobs. We need more kindergartens, nursery homes and so on. In order for people to eventually have more kids. But this is a very serious situation in Europe. When you look at the southern Mediterranean, you see a boom. And in Europe we have a shrinkage."