A new chapter in German politics

This week Mark Leonard is joined by Nevada Joan Lee, a policy fellow in ECFR’s US programme, and Stephen Wertheim, a senior fellow in the American Statecraft program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Together they discuss what the imminent midterms mean for Ameri ...  Show more

This week, Mark Leonard welcomes Andrew Small, head of ECFR’s Asia programme, to discuss how Chinese industrial overcapacity is threatening European deindustrialisation—and what Europe can do about it.Over the summer, Europe’s approach to China shifted markedly. At the June 2026 ...  Show more

Germany’s ruling Christian Democratic Union has chosen Armin Laschet to replace Angela Merkel as party leader ahead of September’s federal elections, paving the way for the end of the Merkel era. Gideon discusses what a post-Merkel Germany will look like with Wolfgang Ischinge ...

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’ ...  Show more

Gideon talks to Ulrike Franke of the European Council on Foreign Relations about Olaf Scholz’s election win, his Social Democratic party’s likely alliance with the Greens and Free Democrats, and whether this will lead to a change of direction for Germany.<hr><p style='color:grey; ...  Show more