Holiday special: Brussels vs Moscow — the EU risks losing its eastern neighbors

EU Confidential

POLITICO

Politics, News Commentary, News

4.4 • 175 Ratings

🗓️ 27 December 2024

⏱️ 37 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

For the final episode of EU Confidential this year, we revisit a compelling discussion on the European Union’s waning influence in its eastern neighborhood, originally recorded in October. With a fresh wave of pro-EU and anti-government protests erupting in Georgia, this conversation is more relevant than ever and well worth another listen. The episode examines the EU’s struggle to maintain its foothold in Moldova and Georgia, and explores how the ongoing war in Ukraine shapes voter sentiment. We also delve into the impact of Russian interference, domestic political dynamics and Brussels’ own missteps on the future of these countries. EU Confidential host Sarah Wheaton leads the discussion with POLITICO reporters Eva Hartog, Gabriel Gavin and Veronika Melkozerova, offering insights into the challenges and high stakes at play. Later in the episode, we shift focus to the inner workings of the European Commission’s restructured leadership. In a POLITICO Pro Connect session, top policy editors Joanna Roberts, Aoife White, Cory Bennett, Jan Cienski and Douglas Busvine explore the power dynamics within the Commission — who’s wielding real influence and who’s left with merely ceremonial roles. The event was part of the POLITICO Pro Connect “In Conversation With” series, which you can learn more about here. Further reading: Moldova and Georgia ring alarm bells for the EU, by Gabriel Gavin and Eva Hartog Pro-EU campaign won in Moldova despite ‘unfair fight,’ president says, by Gabriel Gavin The man who bought a country, by Dato Parulava, Eva Hartog and Gabriel Gavin "Ashes of Our Fathers. Inside the Fall of Nagorno-Karabakh," Gabriel Gavin’s book, will be released in January 2025. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:30.4	Georgia is on our mind as we head into the new year. The Republic on Europe's eastern border
0:36.3	is looking highly unstable, with the country's pro-EU
0:39.6	president due to leave office just days from now. She'll be replaced by a former football player
0:45.2	whose name was the only one on the ballot, placed there by the ruling Georgian dream party.
0:51.2	With protests escalating and EU accession talks frozen until the end of 2028, the country's
0:57.0	authorities look more and more aligned with Moscow. What you're about to hear is an episode of
1:02.7	EU Confidential we recorded earlier this fall, but it's still highly relevant. As is the question of
1:10.4	Europe's grip over the region, it's worth a fresh
1:13.6	listen. The EU is getting a very rude awakening from its next-door neighbors. Turns out not everyone
1:25.7	is as excited to be in our exclusive club as we thought.
1:30.3	Moldovans voted last week to stay the course on trying to join the EU by a margin of just half a percent.
1:38.1	With the war in Ukraine and the West's reluctance to fully support its fight, people in countries
1:43.7	like Moldova and Georgia, where voters go to the polls this weekend, are starting to think that aligning with Russia might be a safer bet.
1:53.5	And if they didn't come to that conclusion organically, well, the Kremlin is showing its power to shove them in that direction.
2:04.8	Music Well, the Kremlin is showing its power to shove them in that direction. Moldova faced an unprecedented interference campaign from Russia, with as many as 20% of the ballots
2:11.0	tainted by vote-buying and outright lies.
2:14.3	It doesn't sound so different from the info wars that happened a decade ago when Ukrainians
	...

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