Welcome to the European Parliamentary Research Service podcasts.

In this podcast, we'll give you an overview of the most serious risks facing the EU,

from health and security ones to climate change, energy and economic risks.

And we'll show you how their interconnectedness strengthens the case for more cross-sectoral strategies and strategic foresight.

Stay with us.

The most serious risks are both complex and complicated.

Multiple risks can also arise together.

And there are very recent examples of risks that became reality, such as Russia's war on Ukraine

and the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a combined impact on our society, economy and political life.

Truth is, risks don't come in the singular form. They're interconnected and interdependent.

They can trigger or amplify each other. Let's give you an example.

An increase in extreme weather events can include extreme cold snaps, which raise demand for heating,

leading to spikes in energy prices, which can hamper economic recovery and create political tensions.

Combined with economic troubles, this can trigger greater social polarization, and in extreme

cases even lead to the failure of a Western democracy, which would create international

tension and could well damage the global efforts to mitigate climate change.

But let's go step by step and begin with a quick overview of the main

categories of risks facing the EU.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine turned well-identified political and security risks into reality.

It has raised geopolitical tensions to a degree unseen since Cold War times and is creating new spheres

of influence with the EU and the US on one side and Russia and China on the other.

In this context, the risk of deteriorating relations between the EU and China cannot be neglected

...