O'Brien says Ireland, like most EU states, hasn't really had an issue with fossil fuel supply despite the weeks-long closure of the Strait of Hormuz, instead pointing to the rising cost of fossil fuels as the EU's main challenge. "In Ireland, our reserves are robust. We have no issue with supply at the moment, but I think for us in Ireland, like our EU colleagues, the issue is price." 

Faced with nationwide protests over surging fuel prices, the Irish government has tried to respond by implementing concrete measures, including direct subsidies for low-income families. But O'Brien warns this can only be a short-term fix. "The longer this crisis goes on, no government is going to be able to deal with every single price increase. That's why it's imperative that the current situation is resolved."

Watch moreEU unveils plan to tackle energy crisis

For him, the closure of Strait of Hormuz represents the EU's "second big wake-up call," after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, laying bare how vulnerable the bloc still is to foreign disruptions. According to the European Commission, the EU has spent an extra €24 billion on energy imports since the start of the Iran war. And data from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis shows the bloc's imports of Russian liquefied natural gas are up 16 percent in the first quarter of 2026, reaching a record high since the start of the war in Ukraine.

O'Brien admits increasing fossil fuel imports from Russia is "not the way forward" but believes the EU has learned its lesson when it comes to its dependency on imported fossil fuels. He points to efforts on renewables and electrification at the national and EU levels, but argues more needs to be done to accelerate the process. 

Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopened tomorrow, O'Brien believes the EU must prepare for when, not if, the next crisis happens. "We've had Brexit, we've had the pandemic, we've had the outbreak of war in Ukraine, we've had the tariff situation with the United States, and we now have the crisis in the Middle East and the cost-of-living crisis. So we have six in less than 10 years. We need to prepare better for that, and we need to respond better."

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

Various threats have shifted the EU mindset when it comes to security: the war in Ukraine, of course, but also US President Donald Trump's intimidation of fellow NATO members, plus the war in the Middle East.

But concrete action has been hampered by fragmented defence markets, industrial rivalries and different procurement systems. In this episode we look at what more the EU can do – and how it can inject more efficiency and common sense into what it is already doing.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero and Oihana Almandoz

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened the sovereignty of two founding members of NATO, Denmark and Canada, and he has lashed out at NATO countries for refusing his calls to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz during the US and Israeli strikes on Iran. In a fresh blow to the Atlantic alliance, Trump has announced the withdrawal of 5,000 American soldiers from Germany.

Read moreA look at the US military presence in Europe as Trump seeks to withdraw troops from Germany

While France is promoting the idea of a distinct European defence capability, the strongly Atlanticist NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte refers to the notion of a European defence pillar as "a bit of an empty word". What does Perestrello think?

"You need to build a European pillar inside NATO, capable of contributing decisively to the defence of the Euro-Atlantic region," he answers. "I think that's the point. It's not an empty pillar. It's a pillar built with European capabilities and European availability to assume responsibilities inside NATO. So I would say that you need to find the European pillar inside NATO, not outside. Because when the Secretary General says that we should not dream of being able to defend the European continent without the US, what he is saying is that if we go apart, we become weaker. If we work together, we become much stronger. Together, we were able to assure peace and safety in the Euro-Atlantic region for 80 years."

Perestrello recently visited lawmakers in the US, and he insists that, despite Trump's threats against NATO, he found "strong support for the strengthening of the transatlantic bond, and strong support for the transatlantic alliance, both in the House (of Representatives) and in the Senate of the US." But Perestrello says there is also a recognition that "European countries need to do a lot more on the development of our defence capabilities".

Referring to last year's NATO summit in The Hague, where members pledged to increase their defence spending to 5 percent of GDP by 2035, Perestrello remarks: "The targets are established. Now we need to settle and evaluate how this defence spending is increasing. How it is being put into effect. And that is the major thing that needs to be discussed in Ankara (at the NATO summit in July). All the countries are assuming their responsibilities. Even Spain crossed the 2 percent (target) last year. And there's a role also for European leaders to call on the attention of the US administration that the commitments assumed are being accomplished. It's important that everybody knows that."

On NATO's support for Ukraine, Perestrello says: "Frankly, I think we are not doing enough. What we are doing allows Ukraine to resist, allows Ukraine to inflict some damage on Russia, but it's not enough to put pressure on Russia and force them to sit at the table and seriously negotiate a ceasefire and a peace process."

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Oihana Almandoz and Perrine Desplats

While the Union's renewed popularity delights its current members, they are nevertheless concerned about the possible consequences of an enlargement. 

Several voices are thus calling for countries ravaged by war, such as Ukraine, or others plagued by corruption, not to be granted access to an accelerated and incomplete procedure for geopolitical reasons. 

We discuss the issue of EU enlargement with our guests. 

You can read here the verbatim of the debate on EU Enlargement strategy that took place during the plenary session in the European Parliament on 10 March 2026.

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero and Perrine Desplats

We start with the energy crisis hitting Europe as a result of the war in the Middle East. The Swedish government has stated that fuel rationing might be an option at some point. Rosencrantz says that, in Sweden, "we are putting in place measures to dampen the effects of the spikes in prices by reducing the tax on electricity, for example."

She goes on: "It is really important to help consumers and businesses now. But that shouldn't take the focus away from what we need to do in the long run (at the EU level). We need to keep our eyes on the prize, and that is to boost competitiveness in general through simplification. Through fulfilling the single market. And of course, what's going on now really shows that being dependent on fossil fuels from the Middle East or from Russia; that's a bad strategy. It's bad for climate. It's bad for the economy. And it's bad for security."

Sweden is one of the EU's most committed providers of economic and military aid to Ukraine, and we discuss the new situation following the ouster of Viktor Orban in the Hungarian election. She notes that the unblocking of the EU's €90 billion loan to Ukraine "was, of course, an important step. So I'm very glad about the new position from Hungary on this. It's a crucial step, but it's not enough. Sweden has a two-point plan, which is quite simple: more support to Ukraine and more pressure on Russia."

On Ukraine's prospects for joining the EU, Rosencrantz says: "Ukraine belongs in the European family. But we say also from the Swedish point of view that it's a merit-based approach. Any candidate country has to do the reforms. But we from the EU, we shouldn't be the ones blocking. It should be about the reform pace in Ukraine. And they're doing a lot of reforms. We should be able to open up negotiations and start the process. And here I'm hoping, of course, that Hungary will follow this line as well."

We turn to the Swedish "tech boom", one of Rosencrantz's main areas of interest.

"I'm very proud of the Swedish tech scene," she says. "We are ranked number one in innovation in the EU. Number two in the world, actually. In Sweden, it's described as a hobby to invest in stocks and funds. I also think we from Sweden could export our model to the rest of Europe when it comes to capital markets. But of course we also need simplification, we need to reduce bureaucracy, which is something we're all talking about in Europe. But we need to go from just words to concrete action. We're doing it with all these different omnibus packages, but we need more of those. And the Swedish government has been quite active in, for example, the digital omnibus on artificial intelligence, which is important for creating really good conditions for entrepreneurs and tech companies to scale up, but also to stay in Europe."

Programme prepared by Agnès Le Cossec, Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Aline Bottin 

The end of 16 years of power for Viktor Orban in Hungary may signal the end of an era of veto-wielding from Budapest, but how much of an ally will his successor be? Peter Magyar met with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen this week, with the objective of laying out a framework of reforms that will ensure Hungary can receive billions of frozen EU funds – funds that were suspended over rule-of-law issues under the previous government.

Further to the east, Bulgarian voters went to the polls for the eighth time in five years and, perhaps fed up with the instability, voted massively in favour of the former president and former fighter pilot Rumen Radev. He's known for his Eurosceptic views and positions more closely aligned with Russia on topics such as Ukraine than may suit European institutions.

Those two results shake up the political kaleidoscope in Europe – and may shake up the plans of other populist politicians in the EU, such as Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico. Indeed, one conclusion from the EU's freezing of funds to Hungary could be that Brussels is able to leverage those funds to punish governments it considers aren't playing by its rules. We ask if that's really the EU's role.

To discuss these issues, we're joined by Katarina Roth Nevedalova, a non-attached MEP from Slovakia from the party of Prime Minister Robert Fico; by Kristian Vigenin, S&D MEP from Bulgaria and former Bulgarian foreign minister; and by Daniel Freund, a Green MEP from Germany, who co-chairs the Anti-Corruption Intergroup in the European Parliament.

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Aline Bottin 

Breton is a former minister for the economy, finance and industry in France, and a prominent commentator on political and economic matters.

He says he "strongly believes" that an agreement will be found between the US and Iran, and that this will be in Europe's interest "especially because of what we see in terms of gasoline prices".

"I say that it is totally unfair that EU member states are making money on the increase in energy prices, as most of them have a value-added tax (VAT) on that," Breton says, pointing out that the increase in prices "is artificial".

He goes on: "They (member states) have to give back the additional money that they make, and especially for those who need the most support and help. We can think about farmers, we can think about truck drivers, we can think about anyone who is directly impacted."

Asked about Peter Magyar's stunning victory in the Hungarian election – and the ouster of Viktor Orban – Breton emphasises Magyar's commitment to restoring the rule of law in Hungary.

"The rule of law was a big, big, issue," Breton remarks. "The former administration under Viktor Orban did not respect the rule of law. So the good news is that Peter Magyar is willing to change this. For us, what is important is that all member states follow our rule of law, because this is what makes us stronger together, and it is definitely the core of our project."

On the travel ban issued against him by the US authorities, Breton says: "What I understand is that I have, unfortunately, been banned or designated as the mastermind behind the Digital Services Act. You know, I just did my job. What I did was not against anyone. It's not against China, it's not against Singapore, it's not against the US. This is the same for everyone. By the way, the digital act has been voted at 90 percent by our MEPs. It has been voted by 27 countries. This is not about Thierry Breton. This is about Europe. So I understand that behind my case it's Europe, of course, which is being targeted. And I really hope that we will come back to normality because there is a huge misunderstanding about what we have done together in our own European digital space."

This edition of Talking Europe also features a report from FRANCE 24's Clovis Casali on the aftermath of the momentous parliamentary election in Hungary.

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Aline Bottin, Isabelle Romero and Perrine Desplats

Find out more on the procedure of the protection of groundwater against pollution and environmental quality standars in the field of water policy here.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Oihana Almandoz

Nadia Calviño, the president of the European Investment Bank, and a former deputy prime minister in the Spanish government of Pedro Sanchez, has been named one Europe's top "doers" by the digital news site Politico.

She is at the helm of one of the world's largest public lenders – which has set a funding goal of €100 billion this year alone – at a time when defence, security and tech sovereignty have catapulted to the top of the European agenda.

Calviño told FRANCE 24 that the green transition is a strategic necessity. "We need to continue on this track… so that we can become more independent and have a stronger voice in this new world."

That shift is also visible in the EIB's evolving priorities. While insisting in the past that the bank is "not a defence ministry", Calviño says the shifting global landscape has seen a sharp increase in the bank's support for security and defence-related projects, particularly dual-use technologies.

Funding has roughly doubled over the past two years, and could rise further. "I wouldn't exclude that we revise [targets] upwards in the course of the year," she said, pointing to growing demand as Europe seeks to scale up its capabilities.

Beyond geopolitics, Calviño highlighted a mounting domestic pressure point: Europe's housing crisis. Housing prices across the EU have surged by around 60 percent since 2015, with rents soaring and supply tightening.

"We've had a perfect storm since the pandemic," she said. The EIB plans to invest €6 billion this year in housing, focusing on cheaper construction methods, renovation of existing buildings and new projects as part of a broader push to ease pressure on households and younger generations.

On Ukraine, the EIB has emerged as a key financial backer since Russia's full-scale invasion, mobilising €4 billion to rebuild infrastructure, support businesses and keep the economy afloat.

Calviño expressed confidence in Ukraine's long-term prospects. "I am quite confident that the Ukrainian economy is going to bounce back very strongly once the war is over," she said, citing the resilience of its people and ongoing cooperation with Kyiv.

She also pushed back on the impact of US trade tensions under Donald Trump, arguing that tariffs have hit American companies harder than European ones.

EU firms, she said, are benefiting from a vast network of global trade agreements. In a fragmenting world, she insisted, Europe has the tools, and the scale, to act like the global economic superpower it is – if it chooses to use them.

Programme prepared by Paul Guianvarc'h, Perrine Desplats, Aline Bottin, Oihana Almandoz and Isabelle Romero

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Paul Guianvarc'h

Trzaskowski rounds on the conservative president of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, for opposing the EU Commission's flagship SAFE programme aimed at boosting European defence.

Trzaskowski says SAFE "is the best programme to strengthen our defence industry", and calls the president's veto "incredible", noting that "for years we had an agreement between us and all the other political forces when it came to strengthening Polish defence and security, helping Ukraine, and so on and so forth. That has been completely dismantled by President Nawrocki."

For Trzaskowski, "it seems that the president is much more interested in making the life of the current government more difficult, and in jostling for power with other populist parties, than in promoting the Polish national interest." 

Our guest places the president's decision on SAFE in the context of next year's parliamentary elections, with an eye to being "the most Eurosceptic in order to get the vote of the conservative electorate".

"The populists have decided to turn anti-European," he added. 

For Trzaskowski, that same competition between forces on the right is the reason why populists are "playing the anti-Ukrainian card. And unfortunately, this has some resonance among the people, not in Warsaw, because in Warsaw and in the big cities, people resoundingly keep on supporting Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, but in some other places, yes, there are some people who are either tired with war or who unfortunately listen to the populists who are stoking up those anti-Ukrainian feelings".

But we put it to Trzaskowski that it is the current pro-EU government, which he is allied with, that has ended some free medical services that had been available to Ukrainians in Poland – not the conservative opposition.

"You know, we were the country which helped the Ukrainians the most", Trzaskowski responds. "And we had 400,000 refugees staying in Warsaw alone, staying in our houses. And we've granted them almost citizen-like treatment here when it comes to education and healthcare. But, after four years, the European Union as a whole has decided to limit some of those services, especially when it comes to long-term treatment of cancer and so forth."

Poland has long been seen as a very pro-Atlanticist country, but recent opinion polls suggest that Poles do not view Donald Trump nearly as favourably as they viewed other US presidents. Is that a reason for Poland to get on board with French President Emmanuel Macron's plans for European defence, and particularly with the possible extension of France's nuclear umbrella to other EU member states?

"Our position is that NATO is the the cornerstone of our security", Trzaskowski replies. "Of course, we should have the best possible relations with the Americans and try to do everything to make sure that they stay in Europe. But at the same time, we should do absolutely everything to invest in our defence and in European capabilities. And, by the way, that's exactly what Trump told us – that we should take it more seriously and take more responsibility. So yes, we should strengthen NATO guarantees but we should also consider the plans of President Macron and analyse them very seriously because, quite simply, you are going to be more secure in this part of Europe when you have strong transatlantic capabilities and strong Polish and European capabilities."

Programme prepared by Charlotte Prudhomme, Luke Brown, Paul Guianvarc'h and Perrine Desplats

To learn more about the works of the Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the EU, click here.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Aline Bottin and Isabelle Romero

"The war going on in the Middle East is having a huge impact on our economy," Hansen tells us. "We have trade flows going through these lanes. We are dependent on imports from there when it comes to oil and LNG (liquefied natural gas). But also, fertilisers are going through the affected region. Production sites (for fertilisers) are halted. So, this is creating problems for the agricultural sector. And generally speaking, our economy will have issues to cope with the situation." 

For Hansen, the war highlights the EU’s vulnerability when it comes to supply chains. "One of our weaknesses is that we are heavily dependent on imports from third countries, on fertilisers and on energy," Hansen says. "Fertilizer prices were going up by 60% since 2020. So, this was already putting cereal producers really on edge. This is not a sustainable situation. We need to find solutions. We have the agricultural reserve, but this is of course not nearly sufficient. So, we have to find other possibilities to help farmers to cope with this situation." 

We ask Hansen if the Commission has made a risky political gamble by provisionally applying the controversial EU-Mercosur trade agreement (with Latin American countries), despite opposition from farmers, trade unions, and MEPs in the EU Parliament. 

"Well, it would not be the first time that a trade agreement is provisionally applied," Hansen answers. "There are precedents for that. And there was a very clear mandate from the (EU) Council side to go for this provisional application. The Parliament decided not to immediately vote on the consent. It is of course free to do so." Hansen is adamant that "many sectors are really wishing for this agreement. The wine and spirits sector; the dairy sector; the olive oil sector; the ham sector of Italy and Spain as well. This is the economic reality." 

Christophe Hansen insists that the Commission’s simplification agenda does not mean a watering down of environmental standards in agriculture, particularly when it comes to pesticides. This despite major concerns flagged up by the likes of the European Environmental Bureau and the Pesticides Action Network Europe. 

"The approval of products is currently a very long procedure which, unfortunately, is blocking, for example, the marketing of new biopesticides that are low-risk substances. Those (new products) have the same approval time - 7 to 8 to 10 years. This is too slow. And when I speak to the manufacturers of these new alternatives to the classic chemical products, they say, ‘well, we are going to move to the United States’. We funded the research, and then they go elsewhere because our procedures are too slow. That has to change. Otherwise, we will not be competitive with anybody in the world anymore." 

At the same time, it does not want to appear too closely aligned with the US‑Israeli strikes on Iran, which some EU member states — particularly Spain — have said are outside international law. So how should the EU walk this tightrope? And how can it support the Iranian people in this very difficult military, economic and humanitarian context? Our MEPs discuss. 

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Aline Bottin, Oihana Almandoz, Paul Guianvarc'h and Isabelle Romero

We start with the war in the Middle East and ask McGrath whether he believes, as France and Spain have said, that the US-Israeli attacks on Iran are outside international law?

"Well, ultimately, it is for the international courts to give a definitive determination on that legal question," he answers. "But I think we have to remember here the absolute brutality of the Iranian regime and the brutality that they have perpetrated on their own people over many decades, including in recent weeks and in recent months."

"There is an obligation on all parties now to this conflict to behave in a responsible way; to minimise damage and civilian casualties," McGrath goes on. "It is appalling to see innocent lives being lost. And that must be avoided at all costs."

On the Iranian political dimension, McGrath states that "the outcome that we want to see here as a European Union is a system of governance in Iran that meets the needs of the Iranian people, and that they can be better served and better supported by a new form of government. Ideally, we would like to see a democratic government, a form of government that meets their needs and treats them in a far better and more humane way than the current Iranian regime has been doing for a long time."

On the obvious split between Spain and France on the one hand and Germany on the other when it comes to responding to the US and Israel, McGrath points out that the EU treaties make it clear that the Common Foreign and Security Policy "is determined on the basis of unanimity, at European Council level. So it's not for the European Commission or the External Action Service to arrive at a policy position and represent the European Union. It is led by the member states, and we have to be given a mandate to represent and reflect that body of opinion. Of course, on any significant international issues, it is difficult to achieve unanimity. That is the reality that we face."

'Rule of law is not an optional extra'

Turning to rule-of-law issues in Hungary and Slovakia, McGrath reminds us that "the rule of law is not an optional extra within the European Union. It is a binding obligation of EU membership". On Hungary, "a number of significant judgments are expected in the period ahead from the Court of Justice. And we have the Article 7 procedure that was triggered by the European Parliament back in 2018 – but the EU Council remains in ownership of that particular process".

When it comes to Slovakia, McGrath says that the Commission has "received responses from the Slovak authorities in relation to our two letters of formal notice, which constitute the initiation of an infringement process. We are considering those replies that we have received. And of course, action and positive movement is what we actually need to see, in order for us to change our position. There is a way back (for the Slovak authorities) to address and repair these issues".

With elections coming up in Hungary and in Denmark, we turn to the question online disinformation and election interference.

"I'm very pleased that the new European Centre for Democratic Resilience is now up and running and with the full support of the member states of the European Union," McGrath avers. "And its central purpose really is to act as a hub, as a point of coordination, to join together all of the good work that is happening within the (EU) institutions and also at the level of the member states. We know that there has been foreign interference in elections in Europe. We also know that with the power of technology and the extraordinary power of artificial intelligence, the ability to spread disinformation does present real challenges for our democracies."

Indeed, aren't existing EU tools falling behind those very rapid advances in AI and deepfakes?

"We need guardrails and regulatory parameters, and in particular on AI", McGrath replies. "And we need to keep this under review. If we need to do more, then we have to be willing to make such proposals. But we do have a very strong toolbox, including support for free and independent media, support for civil society and support for independent justice systems. All of these are essential foundations of a free, open and democratic society, and we need to continue to invest in them."

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Aline Bottin, Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats and Paul Guianvarc'h

On a global scale, Europe is actually very progressive. If one looks at the World Economic Forum's latest Gender Gap Index, European countries take eight spots out of the world's top 10.

In this show we explore areas that are still problematic in Europe when it comes to equality, particularly AI deepfakes and cyberbullying targeting women and girls – something that our guests are addressing at the 70th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York.

To learn more about the European Parliament's action in favour of women's rights, click here.

Programme prepared by Isabelle Romero, Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Aline Bottin and Paul Guianvarc'h

The International Agency for Research on Cancer says it expects cases in Europe to keep increasing over the next two decades. That may be part of a global trend, but it still leads us to the question: why do Europeans account for around 25 percent of global cancer cases when they represent less than 10 percent of the world's population? Have Europeans become too comfortable in the way they live?

Find out more with the Intergroup on Cancer and Rare Diseases at the European Parliament.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Oihana Almandoz and Agnès Le Cossec

Speaking of February 24, 2022, Charles Michel remembers, “The night when this full-scale invasion started, I had a phone call with Zelensky. He told me that there were (Russian) attacks everywhere. A few hours later, we had a meeting in Brussels with the 27 heads of state and government. And I managed to have Volodymyr Zelensky with us by video conference. It was a terrible moment because, in fact, we didn't need to talk to each other. Every leader around the table, we all had the same feelings. We all understood that this moment was a game changer for the future of the European continent. And we were also aware that it was extremely important to make bold decisions to support Ukraine.”

What does Charles Michel think of President Macron’s recent remark that it would be “useful” for him and the Europeans to start talking directly to President Putin again?

“That's a very good idea, because what is going on today is a real problem for the EU,” Michel answers.  “It's not normal that the European Union is not at the table. And if you are not at the table, you are on the menu. It means that no-one is defending our interest. We have observed that President Trump, very rapidly after his inauguration, made the choice to give legitimacy to Vladimir Putin and to launch those talks with Putin. We have to do more to be masters of our destiny. That's about security. That's about defence. That's about the decades to come. We must be at the table.”

We ask Charles Michel who should be put forward as an EU envoy in any potential direct talks with the Kremlin.

“There are various options, but I think that the most powerful option would be for the European Council to give a mandate, because it's the body with the highest legitimacy, with the 27 heads of state government,” Michel replies. “It could be a mandate to Antonio Costa, the president of the European Council, to be in the talks – with a strong mission; the defence of the European interest. You know, it’s very strange; we are powerful from the economic point of view. We are powerful from the military point of view. It’s very clear today that we are the most important supporter of Ukraine in terms of financial support, and in terms of military support. We must be more self-confident, I think.”

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero

On the fourth anniversary of full-scale war, Chentsov says that Ukrainians "again feel this feeling of strong support and solidarity with Ukraine. The unity of Europe is there. The role of European institutions and member states cannot be underestimated."

Faced with a particularly harsh winter and Russian missile attacks, Chentsov points to the EU’s crucial help in the energy sector. "The EU has managed to mobilise more than €3 billion for energy support since February 2022; emergency purchases, generators, transformers and so on." Chentsov highlights that Ukraine now faces "a very difficult combination of very low temperatures and depleted stocks of missiles to hit Russian ballistic missiles and drones".

On the landmark EU loan for Ukraine that was agreed at the end of last year, Chentsov says, "the 90-billion-euro loan launched new instruments to cover our needs in 2026 and 2027. Around 60 billion from this loan will be allocated to support Ukrainian defence, both for the Ukrainian defence industry and the European defence industry. What is very important is that Ukraine will be able to use the instrument in quite a flexible way, which means that we will be able to defend Ukraine."

Referring to Ukraine’s funding shortfall even after taking the EU loan into account, Chentsov remarks; "the EU is covering a significant part of our needs, but definitely other partners are supposed to chip in, and we are working hard with the rest of our G7 partners. There were quite successful meetings recently in Brussels."

We ask if the Ukrainian authorities feel abandoned by the Trump administration, given the latter’s drastic reduction in financial aid to Ukraine over the past year. "I hope that transatlantic unity will remain," Chentsov responds. "These days, our colleagues in the EU institutions and member states are talking to the US administration, for instance, about how to coordinate additional sanctions pressure on the Russian shadow fleet. And we are talking about a total ban on maritime transportation. So there is coordination between the EU and the US. And we definitely try to encourage our US partners put the pressure on Russia."

On Ukraine’s EU membership process, Chentsov says that "it’s important to find a way out” of the impasse caused by the Hungarian government blocking the formal opening of the first cluster in the EU accession negotiations. He adds, "We managed to find a way to move forward with the European Commission and the EU Council Secretariat and to do basically all the technical work, not only on the first cluster, but also on other clusters, in order to be ready to double down as soon as we will be able to overcome this political blockage. We are moving fast and we try not to lose any momentum."

Programme prepared by Oihana Almandoz, Perrine Desplats and Isabelle Romero

Kata Tütto, a Hungarian socialist, and president of the European Committee of the Regions, tells Talking Europe's Douglas Herbert that the EU's next long-term budget, which runs from 2028 to 2034, risks quietly shrinking the money that underpins local investment under the EU's region-focused Cohesion Policy.

At the centre of the controversy is a proposed "mega-fund" worth roughly €865 billion, which would pool money for farmers and poorer regions in a single pot.

That may sound vast. But spread across seven years and 260 regions, the reality is far less impressive, Tütto says. Under the current proposals, funding for regions would fall to roughly half of today's level. It's a shift that could hollow out the EU's cohesion policy, the main tool designed to reduce economic gaps between Europe's cities and regions.

The timing, Tüttő argues, could hardly be worse. Every region – rich or poor – is undergoing a demographic, climate and technological transition. In a world of constant crisis and mounting threats, she warns, governments are tempted to sacrifice long-term investment for short-term fixes, centralising decisions and draining attention and money away from the local level.

While Tüttő accepts that defence and security now dominate the political agenda, she challenges the definition of what security means. It is not only about tanks, borders or drones, she says, but also about safe drinking water, affordable housing, clean energy and resilient infrastructure – the everyday needs that allow societies to function when shocks hit.

Tütto's message to Brussels is blunt: Europe cannot project strength abroad if it allows inequality and instability to grow at home.

Undermining Cohesion Policy, she warns, would weaken the very base that allows the European Union to act together economically, politically and strategically.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Paul Guianvarc'h and Isabelle Romero

After Australia became the first country to block under-16s from platforms in December, a host of EU countries are poised to possibly follow suit.

France, Spain, Portugal and Greece are now weighing similar measures, driven by growing concerns over algorithms and the grip of Big Tech on young minds.

Supporters of tougher rules argue that the risks are no longer theoretical. Studies increasingly link heavy social media use among teenagers to anxiety, depression, addictive behaviour and, in extreme cases, suicide.

Read more‘Addiction is profitable’: Meta, Google stand trial over social media effects on children

Governments insist they are stepping in where platforms have failed to protect children from systems designed to maximise screen time over well-being.

Marc Angel, a Luxembourgish MEP from the Socialists & Democrats group, and a member of the European Parliament's Intergroup on Children's Rights, is among the European lawmakers who backs a ban.

In our Talking Europe debate, Angel argues that the logic is simple: what is illegal offline should be illegal online.

He warns that today's dangers are no longer just in the street, but on the bedroom screens of smartphones and other devices. "When I was a kid, my parents told me not to let strangers into the house," he says. "Now the strangers are in the bedrooms of kids. And sometimes they aren't even real people."

But opponents of a blanket ban, such as Ana Vasconcelos, a Portuguese MEP with Renew Europe, consider it a blunt and ineffective tool. In a pointed retort to Angel, Vasconcelos argues that Europe risks over-correcting, prioritising symbolic action over workable solutions.

Vasconcelos warns that age-verification systems raise serious privacy issues, expose sensitive data to hacking, and are "very easy to circumvent." In her view, bans may create a false sense of safety while failing to address the real problem.

Instead, she argues for targeted measures: privacy-by-design on devices, phone-free spaces in schools, stronger media literacy, together with greater parental responsibility. For Vasconcelos, the challenge is not whether social media poses risks, but how to prepare young people to navigate a digital reality they cannot avoid.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Isabelle Romero, Oihana Almandoz and Paul Guianvarc'h

Find here the verbatim of the debate on the protection of minors online in the European Parliament

Despite growing friction, Benifei, an MEP from Italy with the Socialists and Democrats parliamentary group, says ties between Brussels and Washington remain vital.

But a partnership, he adds, cannot survive without mutual respect.

While favouring diplomacy, Benifei insists there is a clear limit after which Europe must be ready to retaliate if it wants to be taken seriously. He points to the Greenland episode as proof that firmness and determination work: once EU governments signalled real consequences, dialogue with Washington on Arctic security became "calmer" and more "reasonable".

On trade, Benifei says Europe is deliberately reaching out to others. The recent EU-India trade agreement, he argues, shows the bloc is diversifying its trade routes and reducing dependence on any single partner. The message to Washington is simple: Europe has alternatives, and leverage.

As the EU leads global efforts on AI regulation, Benifei sees artificial intelligence as a tool to enforce trade rules and ensure that agreements are respected. But he cautions that Europe must strive to close the gap with the US and China by strengthening computing power, mobilising capital and deepening financial market integration.

Benifei is sharply critical of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's approach to US President Donald Trump, calling it "very bad" and driven by domestic politics and ideology rather than Italy's national interests. His conclusion is blunt: only a united Europe can negotiate with the United States on an equal footing.

Programme prepared by Perrine Desplats, Oihana Almandoz, Paul Guianvarc'h and Isabelle Romero