The Eurofile

Max and Donatienne discuss the second round of the Polish presidential election and its implications for Europe. Then they discuss Max’s recent Europe trip and his impressions from meetings with European officials and experts. Learn more:  Russian Roulette | CSIS Podcasts [https://www.csis.org/podcasts/russian-roulette] The Implications of Poland’s Presidential Election [https://www.csis.org/analysis/implications-polands-presidential-election]

Max and Donatienne discuss the second round of the Romanian presidential election, Portugal’s parliamentary election, and a new EU-UK deal on post-Brexit relations. Then they turn to a conversation with Jana Puglierin, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and head of its Berlin office, to discuss the priorities of the new German government. Learn more:  Russian Roulette | CSIS Podcasts [https://www.csis.org/podcasts/russian-roulette]

On this episode, Max and Donatienne cover the first round of the Romanian presidential election, where George Simion, a hard-right candidate, soared to a first-place finish ahead of the second round on May 18. Since recording this episode on May 5th, major developments, including the resignation [https://www.politico.eu/article/romania-prime-minister-marcel-ciolacu-resignation-presidential-election/] and Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and rapid capital flight [https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/romania-looks-counter-capital-outflows-after-far-right-election-gains-2025-05-06/], have sparked a political crisis. This story is still developing. The hosts then break down British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s attempt to reset relations with the European Union ahead of a May 19 Brexit summit, and welcome Abe Newman, professor in the School of Foreign Service and Government Departments at Georgetown University and Director of the BMW Center for German and European Studies, for a conversation about coming collisions in transatlantic tech.

In this week's episode, Max and Donatienne cover Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s visit to Washington and the state of transatlantic relations as we approach the 100-day mark of the second Trump presidency. Then, they are joined by Janka Oertel, director of the Asia programme and a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), to break down how big changes in US trade policy and rising transatlantic tensions affect the EU-China trade and diplomatic relationship.

Following announcements from President Donald Trump of sweeping new tariffs, Max and Donatienne discuss the fallout from last week’s “Liberation Day” with economist and international trade expert, Federico Steinberg: a Visiting Fellow with the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program and Prince of Asturias Distinguished Visiting Professor at Georgetown University. This episode dives deeply into the impact of these tariffs and what may come next for Europe.