Kaja Kallas rebuts American criticism; Europe considers nuclear proliferation, and more
The World in Brief from The Economist
The Economist
4.1 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 16 February 2026
⏱️ 5 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | The Economist |
| 0:04.3 | Hello, you're listening to the free edition of the world in brief from The Economist. |
| 0:12.6 | As a reminder, if you subscribe to The Economist or our new podcast subscription, Economist Podcast Plus, |
| 0:19.9 | you'll get access to a deeper look at the day ahead, |
| 0:23.0 | updated three times a day. You'll also get access to the rest of our award-winning podcasts. |
| 0:29.7 | If you're already a subscriber, visit economist.com slash the world in brief, or visit the |
| 0:36.1 | economist app to start listening. |
| 0:38.6 | Here's today's free edition. |
| 0:43.9 | This is the World In Brief from The Economist. |
| 0:51.2 | Our Top Stories |
| 0:53.0 | Kaya Callis, the Vice President of the European Commission, rejected America's assertion, made in a national defense document last year, that Europe is facing civilizational erasure. |
| 1:06.0 | Ms. Kallas was speaking at the Munich Security Conference, where a day earlier, Marco Rubio, |
| 1:11.9 | America's Secretary of State, won over the audience by playing up ties between the Allies. |
| 1:18.6 | Karon Novrodzky, Poland's president, told Polsat and News Channel that his country should work |
| 1:24.2 | towards joining the nuclear project, citing the aggressive imperial attitude |
| 1:28.8 | of Russia towards Poland. The Munich Security Conference was a buzz with talk of nuclear proliferation. |
| 1:35.0 | Estonia's Prime Minister and Latvia's Deputy Defence Minister both contemplated the once-taboo |
| 1:40.1 | idea, while Friedrich Meert's Germany chancellor, said France and Germany were discussing a European |
| 1:45.5 | nuclear deterrent. Garmine Gulloschenko, a former Ukrainian minister, was arrested while trying to |
| 1:52.9 | leave the country. Mr. Gulloschenko was one of several senior officials to resign last year |
| 1:57.8 | after being implicated in an alleged $100 million embezzlement scheme. |
| 2:02.8 | Separately, Vladimir Zelensky, the president, said on Saturday that Ukraine needed two months |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Economist, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The Economist and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.

