Trump bites. Europe grasps for an antidote.

Brussels Playbook Podcast

POLITICO

News, Politics, News Commentary

4.4 • 204 Ratings

🗓️ 16 January 2026

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

“A little less conversation, a little more action.” That line from an old Elvis Presley song could double as a critique of Europe’s position right now — and as a prescription. On this episode of EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton speaks with former Spanish foreign minister, Arancha González-Laya, about how Europe should operate at a moment when power is exercised more bluntly and patience for rules is wearing thin. Her core argument echoes Presley’s advice: Europe isn’t powerless — it just needs to use the leverage it already has. González-Laya, an ex-EU trade negotiator and now dean of the Paris School of International Affairs at Sciences Po, explains what Europe’s leverage looks like in practice: deeper cooperation on energy and defense, and a more assertive use of the internal market. She describes these as Europe’s antidotes to Trump-era chaos — exemplified by his renewed claims over Greenland and the capture of Venezuela’s president — and discusses how Europe could respond to the situation in Iran. Later, in another installment of the Berlaymont Who’s Who series, POLITICO’s Aitor Hernández-Morales takes a closer look at Dan Jørgensen, the EU’s commissioner for energy and housing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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1:01.0	So there's been this sudden switch in the conventional wisdom around Brussels. I mean, let's look at Greenland.
1:08.6	Trump talked about it in his first term didn't actually do anything.
1:12.6	Talked about it, you know, pretty much even before he started his second term a year ago, didn't do anything.
1:19.1	Everybody was like, yeah, you know what?
1:20.7	The guy likes to talk 51st state stuff.
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1:23.7	He's not going to do it.
	...

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