The Industrial Accelerator Act is out. On public procurement in strategic sectors, it tries to square the circle: keep trusted partners in and China out. A few thoughts on the Commission’s approach in the proposal and the problem of China's transnational footprint:

UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves just previewed a three point growth strategy - with 'Stronger post Brexit trade relations with the EU' as No.1 goal. Though for that to be meaningful, a much broader discussion on changing the UK's stance towards getting closer to the EU will be necessary.

New UK parliamentary report wants gov to go further with EU but within political red lines, while EU partnership is ranked „alongside US and Commonwealth“. The intro alone is testament to how tight the UK’s room for manoeuvre is. Deserves thorough reading. publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cm...

Not a good look amidst a major crisis. This has deeper roots - both institutional but also in that economic and foreign policy are increasingly hard to seperate. www.politico.eu/article/iran...

Clearest European distancing from the US on Iran (from what I‘ve seen) comes from… the UK. No to „regime change from the skies“, yes to a „viable legal basis“ and a „thought-through plan“. By British diplomatic standards this is a verbal onslaught… www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

UK take is that it had no part in the attacks but condemns the Iranian response, that its key interlocutors are the E3 and that it is for Iran to „end this now“. Very much in line with EU foreign policy stance, with an addional emphasis on UK defence capabilities. www.gov.uk/government/s...

… and now EU Foreign Policy chief condemns Iran‘s „indiscriminate attacks against its neighbours“. Pretty clear European response pattern emerging here. But holding a European line will be a major challenge in the chaos that is likely to follow if this regime truly collapes.

Now a statement from Merz, highlighting Israel‘s right to defend itself from Iran‘s nuclear threat. „The objective must continue to be that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons“. Additional measures taken to protect Israeli and Jewish institutions in GER. www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktu...

E3 (Germany, France, UK) statement on Iran, focussing on stability and protection of civilians. Condemnation of Iran‘s „indiscriminate“ attacks but not of US/Israeli action. Note that Iran was one of the few EU foreign policy successes back in 2015, led by E3… www.bundesregierung.de/breg-de/aktu...

EU statement on Iran very much in line with existing policy (sanctions + diplomatic engagement to prevent nuclear escalation). But no outright condemnation of US and Israel action and an explicit reference to the regime as „murderous“. www.consilium.europa.eu/de/press/pre...

Interesting to hear Scholz identify genuine personal respect for people with seemingly less fancy jobs as a key lever to fight populism. But his thoughts on Russia remind me that the German centre right is currently better at rethinking Trump‘s US than the centre left was at pivoting from Russia.

Thoughts from our China expert ahead of Merz‘s trip to Beijing (in German): China‘s role in Ukraine is as much a structural problem to the relationship as Beijing‘s industrial and export policies. But German business interests don‘t necessarily square with broader European sovereignty objectives.

Soft power is hard thing to acquire, yet oh so easy to squander. These are the new friends of the mightiest power on the planet.

Rubio‘s MSC speech felt like a love letter to Europe with lots of conditions attached to it. Notably going beyond defence and into deeper cultural issues. So not really that flattering. If that‘s the US vision of the future Western axis it‘s going to have at least two, if not multiple, strands…

Good to see VdL and Starmer recognizing the (largely economic) EU-UK relationship as part and parcel of Europe’s new security and defence posture today. These have often been treated separately, as if they were in parallel worlds. The obvious test case is real defence industrial cooperation #MSC2026

"With, without or against Washington" - timely and comprehensive analysis from many viewpoints from @swp-berlin.org on Europeans relations to the US, directly and in other world regions or cross-cutting issues:

Good analysis of the UK's first proper Trump shock. I'd add that Bx is watching the UK's strategic headache carefully, hoping for shifts on red lines, while the UK will hope for more EU flexibility. Both are highly problematic. Note that big economic resilience issues aren't even on the agenda yet.

Is 2026 the year that an EU alliance strategy takes shape? This & more from our christal gazing exercise on competitiveness & MFF, Ukraine, EU-UK, China and US. @lucasguttenberg.bsky.social @corajungbluth.bsky.social @annaheckhausen.bsky.social @etiennehoera.d-64.social bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

"But the problem is that, while the UK might be changing its outlook on the relationship, the EU is not." ✍️ Following the strong rhetoric used by Starmer in his interview with @bbclaurak.bsky.social, @jreland.bsky.social explains why it isn't quite that simple 🔗 ukandeu.ac.uk/new-year-sam...

A country of almost 30 million, with a powerful if hated security apparatus with links to organised crime and access to lots of cocaine... what could possibly go wrong?

Toppling a dictator has its appeal. But a de facto US–China G2—Russia in or out—in which great powers dominate their perceived backyards is profoundly destabilizing, and a strategic nightmare for Europe.

Remarkably cautious EU response.

A defining moment for Europe. If it endorses/fails to condemn this flagrant breach of international law, it will have surrendered its core justification for opposing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Ahead of President Steinmeier's first State Visit to London this week, I looked at where the Anglo-German bilateral axis can leverage real complementarities for Europe. Defence and energy lead the list, and smoother EU–UK links would also help, as ever... bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

Remarkable. But positions were ultimately too far apart - for now. www.spiegel.de/ausland/gros...

🇩🇪🤝🇬🇧 From cyber security to global stability, collaboration is key. Yesterday, Foreign Minister Wadephul and Foreign Secretary Cooper met in Berlin for a Strategic Dialogue. This is the #KensingtonTreaty in action: a historic commitment shaping a stronger, safer Europe through trust and teamwork.

New HoL report on the EU-UK out, just as the post-Summit honeymoon ends and the waters are getting choppy (and UK domestic politics even choppier). Cautiously welcomes the direction of travel in what will be a long-term process. My own thought right now is that the UK's strategic choices are

Friday's setback - no EU mandate on ETS - means there may be no agreement before CBAM taxes kick-in in January. But this file is still one of the least political and thus do-able, compared to youth mobility, SAFE and even SPS. Reminder that progress on the Common Understanding will not be linear.

Framing UK–EU ETS alignment as a ‘stealth tax’ misses the point. Linking carbon markets isn’t Brussels control - it’s smart climate economics: cuts costs, boosts investment, avoids trade friction & gives UK firms certainty. Climate policy ≠ punishment. www.thetimes.com/uk/transport...

Strong interview by @dsorennie.bsky.social on Europe's survival in a world of strongmen. Frank on China ("key enabler in Ukraine") and likewise (!) on EU member states (without unity EU's growing toolkit has little worth). The partnership-strategy invites more probing-e.g. what's in it for others?

Does the rise of populism have economic roots, and more protectionist and anti-immigration policies help? Quick thread on my latest piece here buff.ly/O2SoUok

Germany stands for the multilateral system and international law - in the spirit of respect, justice & peace. That's why we are running for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council in 2027-28. Today we celebrate 80 years of the United Nations - Happy Birthday! #BetterTogether

A deeply reported piece on Maga-meddling in the UK. What remains unexplored are the real levels of popular support for the various strands of the UK hard-right. Research in Germany points to worringly high levels of support for authoritarianism-what's the UK equivalent? Sth for a follow-up piece?

Our new divergence is tracker out: auditing the extent to which UK/EU rules and regs have aligned/diverged since June. It highlights the increasingly awkward position which the UK occupies: of wanting to act like the EU on most regulatory issues, but without being part of the club.

A few thoughts on the EU’s Defence Readiness 2030 Roadmap The aim of the Roadmap is essentially trying to inject more resources and coherence into Europe’s defence ramp up defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/eu-defence-i...

🔟 Finally there is a question of attention. The Roadmap is the latest of a long series of EU defence documents, which are quickly forgotten. The priority should be tangible progress on readiness

My new piece for @centreeuropeanref.bsky.social on EU-UK co-operation on China policy. Tl;dr: if you say a country is a systemic rival, or that competing with it may have huge consequences for your citizens, you need more serious policy responses than either the EU or UK have offered so far.

Interesting contrast between the UK (read: the UK’s national security advisor’s) influence on today‘s Gaza breakthrough, compared to the EU’s traditionally unfortunate role in the region. At least in this take. www.thetimes.com/article/f045...

His Majesty King Charles III has announced that he will host German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his wife Elke Büdenbender for a State Visit from 3-5 December. It will be an incredible moment for 🇬🇧🇩🇪 relations and the first State Visit by a German President in 27 years.

Germany, the United Kingdom and France stand united - E3 leaders‘ statement 👇

Heute, am 7. Oktober gedenken wir der Opfer des menschenverachtenden Terrorangriffs der Hamas in Israel vor zwei Jahren. Nichts und niemand kann diese monströsen Gewalttaten gegen Zivilisten rechtfertigen. Die israelischen Geiseln müssen umgehend freigelassen werden.

Amazing to celebrate the landmark 35th anniversary of German Unity with so many British friends tonight. Today, Germany and the UK work together to secure a lasting peace in Europe – a Europe that is united, free, and democratic.

Almost done. Our Fall 2025 issue “Defending Europe‘s Economic Security“ will be out on Tuesday, marking IPQ‘s fifth anniversary — w/ Luuk van Middelaar, Hans Kribbe @jbenford-berlin.bsky.social @lucyaash.bsky.social @helenalegarda.bsky.social @rebeccawire.bsky.social @anandmenon.bsky.social et al.

Economic Security is central to the EU’s external strategy - see SOTEU today - but cooperation with the UK remains nascent. Political and structural reasons are behind this but @antonspisak.bsky.social and I think there are grounds for deeper cooperation: www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/en/our-proje...

"German sentiment sits with the UK, but the strategy always stays with the EU”. My thoughts in @economist.com on the - otherwise highly welcome and well-crafted - Anglo-German Friendship Treaty announced today. Thanks to @sambeal.bsky.social www.economist.com/britain/2025...

Germany and #UK sign the UK-German #FriendshipTreaty today. @aussenminister.diplo.de​ is traveling to London with Chancellor Merz and will also hold talks with Foreign Secretary David Lammy. 🇩🇪🤝🇬🇧 #StayTuned

🇬🇧🇩🇪 A new UK–Germany friendship treaty is on the way – but what will make it last? In @politicshome.bsky.social, @nvondarza.bsky.social and Ed Turner argue: real depth requires more than ministerial fora – it needs direct links between parliamentarians. 🔗 buff.ly/D6XqLvw

A real pleasure to welcome the UK Minister for EU Relations, Nick Thomas-Symonds, to a roundtable with stakeholders in Berlin last week. A detailed and forward-looking discussion of the new Strategic Partnership. More can be done but this is a rare positive development in a gloomy int'l environment

We’re live in Berlin with a full house! Daniela Schwarzer and Lucas Guttenberg kick off a spirited discussion on whether coalitions of the willing can save Europe. Follow here for more updates and insights ⬇️

My latest column for @wpr.bsky.social www.worldpoliticsreview.com/europe-major...