December 06, 2024

Turmoil in Paris and Berlin Going into a Second Trump Term

Earlier this week, France’s government collapsed following a successful no-confidence vote from left-wing and far-right lawmakers. This political crisis comes on the heels of the collapse of Germany’s ruling coalition several weeks ago, leaving both of the European Union’s largest member states rudderless at a time when the bloc faces major challenges. Simultaneously, the EU is preparing for Donald Trump’s return to the White House next month and the possible consequences for the future of the war in Ukraine and threats to impose new tariffs. Finally, a brand-new European Commission has just taken office, only adding to all this uncertainty. To help us make sense of what we should expect in the months to come, Tara Varma and Liana Fix join Andrea Kendall-Taylor and Jim Townsend on this episode of Brussels Sprouts.  

Tara Varma is a visiting fellow with the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution.  

Liana Fix is a fellow for Europe at the Council on Foreign Relations.  

  • Commentary
    • The Washington Quarterly
    • April 30, 2025
    A U.S. Strategy for Advancing EU Enlargement

    In 2014, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker famously declared a pause in the European Union’s enlargement. This pause is now over, after Russia’s 2022 invasion ...

    By Nicholas Lokker

  • Video
    • April 30, 2025
    The U.S. Is No Longer the Leader of the West

    Trump’s second term has dismantled the idea of the U.S. as the leader of the West and instead it’s almost “every nation for itself”, says Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Center f...

    By Jim Townsend

  • Podcast
    • April 25, 2025
    Germany's New Defense Agenda

    On April 9th, Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany’s center-right Christian Democratic Union, secured a coalition agreement with the Social Democrats following his party’s vi...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend

  • Video
    • April 14, 2025
    Trump ‘Humiliated’ as Putin Sends Clear Message That He Doesn’t Care About US

    "Putin is not playing ball." Putin's Palm Sunday attack on Sumy is "embarrassing for the White House" as it comes just days after Steve Witkoff met with the Kremlin, says adju...

    By Jim Townsend

View All Reports View All Articles & Multimedia