
EU’s sweaty summer — what you missed (and what matters)
POLITICO - Friday, August 22, 2025Defense
Foreign Affairs
Politics
Security
War in Ukraine
Tariffs
EU Confidential
Competitiveness
Israel-Hamas war
Diplomacy
EU Commission
EU-US trade talks
EU treaties
U.S. election
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Just when we thought we could get a break for the summer, geopolitics had other plans.
This week on EU Confidential, host Sarah Wheaton is joined by POLITICO colleagues Jordyn Dahl, Gabriel Gavin and Jan Cienski for a catch-up on what moved while the bubble was at the beach. From Alaska to the White House: Did anything real shift on Ukraine beyond choreography? We break down the EU-U.S. tariff framework and turn to Gaza — where Brussels is grasping for some sort of leverage — and how the politics split across capitals.