Podcasts about visegrad insight

Visegrad Insight editors Wojciech Przybylski and Staś Kaleta break down Viktor Orbán and Robert Fico's recent dive into geopolitics and peace talks – and how long their influence might last. European Enlargement Fellow Jan Farfal then interviews Erik Jones, Director of the Robert Schuman Centre at the European University Institute, on EU strategy for the return of Donald Trump. Read the interview here: https://visegradinsight.eu/a-win-win-strategy-how-europe-can-turn-trumps-trade-tariffs-into-cooperation/

Poland has become an increasingly important actor within the European Union. After years of democratic backsliding, it`s democracy is consolidating again under Prime Minister Donald Tusk who took office in 2023. In 2025 Poland will face presidential elections and Poland will also be chairing the Council of the European Union. Poland is a stance supporter of Ukraine after it was invaded by Russia in February 2024. It hosts a large number of Ukrainian refugees and is rapidly building up its defense capabilities in order to deter a hostile Russia. What geopolitical role is Poland pursuing in an increasingly multipolar world? How will the election of Donald Trump shape the future of European Security and how does Poland perceive it`s role within the European Union? With Ukraine and Moldova having candidate status for EU accession, what can be expected from Poland in this context? How important is democracy and peace for Poland? Is Poland able to bridge different perceptions of EU countries about the future of the Union? These and other questions are discussed with the political analyst Wojciech Przybylski and the polish academic Maciej Kisilowksi in the 26th episode of the IIP Podcast “Peace Matters” moderated by Stephanie Fenkart. Guests: Wojciech Przybylski is a political analyst heading Visegrad Insight's policy foresight on European affairs. His expertise includes foreign policy and political culture. Editor-in-Chief of Visegrad Insight and President of the Res Publica Foundation. Europe's Future Fellow at IWM - Institute of Human Sciences in Vienna and Erste Foundation. Wojciech also co-authored a book 'Understanding Central Europe', Routledge 2017. He has been published in Foreign Policy, Politico Europe, Journal of Democracy, EUObserver, Project Syndicate, VoxEurop, Hospodarske noviny, Internazionale, Zeit, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, Onet, Gazeta Wyborcza and regularly appears in BBC, Al Jazeera Europe, Euronews, TRT World, TVN24, TOK FM, Swedish Radio and others. Prof. Maciej Kisilowksi's research interests focus on the application of innovation strategy to various nonmarket fields, including public law and regulation. He received his doctorate in law and master's in law degrees from Yale Law School, M.P.A. in economics and public policy from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and M.B.A. with distinction from INSEAD. He also holds another Ph.D. and M.A. in law from Warsaw University. Prof. Kisilowski designed and teaches a number of graduate and executive classes, for which he was awarded the CEU Distinguished Teaching including Award in 2016. Prof. Kisilowski is a frequent commentator on issues of political-economy of East-Central Europe, contributing (among others) to Los Angeles Times, Financial Times, Project Syndicate, Foreign Policy, Wall Street Journal, Politico and Haaretz. He is the author/editor of three books, including Administrategy, which was translated into five languages. His recent academic articles appeared in Law and Social Inquiry and International Business Review. Prof. Kisilowski is involved in a number of social change projects at the intersection of strategy and governance, including The Social Contract Incubator in his native Poland. He's a consultant to governmental organisations, progressive political parties, advocacy groups and businesses in Central Europe and beyond. Moderation: Stephanie Fenkart, Director of the IIP. The episode was recorded on 3 December 2024.

Visegrad Insight editors Wojciech Przybylski and Staś Kaleta break down our Weekly Outlook, including the surprise lead of a far-right candidate in Romania's presidential elections, and the naming of presidential candidates in Poland. Europe Enlargement Fellow Jan Farfał then interviews Veton Surroi, a Kosovar Albanian publicist, politician and journalist, on the Western Balkans under Donald Trump 2.0 and more. URL: https://visegradinsight.eu/romanias-presidential-surprise-far-right-georgescu-or-pro-eu-lasconi/

Visegrad Insight's Editor-in-Chief Wojciech Przybylski comments on voting results in Moldova, after Editor Staś Kaleta breaks down our Weekly Outlook – as the EU backs Donald Tusk's migration plan, the Polish PM visits Belgrade and the V4 struggles to end its dependency on Russian oil. Then, Staś Kaleta and Stephanie Fenkart, Director at the International Institute for Peace, discuss the reality and direction of ‘peace' negotiations and victory plans at the Europe Future Forum.  URL: https://visegradinsight.eu/moldova-votes-for-eu-membership-but-will-russian-interference-stop-sandu/

Visegrad Insight sat down with Alicja Bachulska and Janka Oertel, two of Europe's leading experts on China and co-authors of The Idea of China, a book published by the European Council on Foreign Relations, to discuss the significance of the EU's decision on EV tariffs and its impact on the EU's geoeconomic strategy. Wojciech Przybylski interviews them while Staś Kaleta narrates the most interesting points from our fresh weekly outlook: https://visegradinsight.eu/poland-votes-for-eu-autonomy-from-chinas-electric-cars-against-berlin-budapest-and-bratislava/

How Europe should navigate a renewed conflict in the Middle East? Visegrad Insight sat down with Florence Gaub, Director of the Research Division at the NATO Defense College in Rome and an acclaimed security expert leading foresight-based analysis of international relations, to discuss the shifting geopolitical alignments and consequences of the Middle East on the brink of war.

Visegrad Insight contributing editor Albín Sybera sits down with Marcin Król Fellow Matej Šimalčík and Miroslava Pisklová, Research Fellow at the Slovak Foreign Policy Association, to discuss the bombshell dismissal of Michal Šimečka from his parliamentary post. He is then joined by Eduard Hulicius, Deputy Minister at the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to discuss Czechia's EU portfolio and this week's local elections. Both interviews were conducted at Visegrad Insight's Europe Future Forum in Warsaw this week. Click here to read more about the portfolios: https://visegradinsight.eu/portfolio-decisions-poland-ready-to-lead-a-new-europe/

Visegrad Insight editors Wojciech Przybylski and Staś Kaleta examine the ways in which autocrats from Poland, Hungary and Slovakia manipulate election processes, how Budapest has been helping to smuggle American equipment into Russia, why a Donald Tusk/Piotr Serafin duo could fill a vacuum in the EU – and lots more from our latest Weekly Outlook. URL: https://visegradinsight.eu/law-and-justice-election-fraud-what-next-from-cees-civil-society-oppressors/

Wojciech Przybylski and Visegrad Insight editor Staś Kaleta break down coverage of the Nord Stream drama, as well as the latest on the Kursk incursion, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to CEE, protests in Bratislava – and all the latest outlined in our Weekly Outlook. Weekly Outlook url: https://visegradinsight.eu/indian-pm-modi-visits-warsaw-and-kyiv-amid-europes-internal-strengthening-efforts/

Wojciech Przybylski talks with Visegrad Insight editor Staś Kaleta about several of the critical developments shaping CEE politics this week, including mixed responses to an international prisoner exchange, weaponisation of gender controversies at the Olympics, Ukraine's diplomacy with the Global South and much more – as outlined in our Weekly Outlook.

Bartosz T. Wieliński rozmawia z Wojciechem Przybylskim, politologiem z Visegrad Insight o nadchodzących wyborach do Parlamentu Europejskiego. Czy obecnie rządzące partie zawiodły? Dlaczego partie populistyczne rosną w siłę? Czy to tendencja przełoży się na wyniki wyborów do Parlamentu Europejskiego? Dlaczego obywatele Unii Europejskiej oczekują przede wszystkim bezpieczeństwa? I czy nowy Europarlament jest w stanie je zapewnić? Kto stanie na czele Komisji Europejskiej? Więcej podcastów na: https://wyborcza.pl/podcast. Piszcie do nas w każdej sprawie na: listy@wyborcza.pl.

Wojciech Przybylski moderates a discussion between Michaela Terenzani, SME's lead on the foreign news desk, and Eva Mihočková, Editor-in-chief of Foreign Policy SFPA and Marcin Król Fellow at Visegrad Insight, break down the results of Slovakia's presidential election where Peter Pellegrini won by tapping into the fears of the electorate and amplifying Moscow's disinformation narratives.

In a special episode of Visegrad Insight, Adam Jasser talks to Zsolt Darvas, a renowned economist from Breugel, about the prospects of eurozone membership for the leading economies in CEE.

In today's episode, Galan Dall and Adam Jasser discuss reasons behind Hungary's surprising defeat at the EU summit over Ukraine funding, as Prime Minister Viktor Orbán seems to have finally lost all allies over his pro-Russian stance. Visegrad Insight editors also look at the broader implications of revelations that a Latvian member of the European Parliament is accused of being a  long-standing Russian intelligence asset.

Host Zalan Teodor Gaspar sits down with Wojciech Przybylski and Agnieszka Homańska of Visegrad Insight to discuss the results of the 2023 Polish elections, the issues that defined the election, and what the results mean for the European Union.

Poland's victorious opposition may wait several weeks before it can form the government due to stalling by the outgoing government and its ally, President Andrzej Duda. Duda and the constitutional tribunal packed with political appointees will make it hard to pass legislation, Jakub Jaraczewski, a leading constitutional scholar, tells Visegrad Insight.

The large turnout shows the high level of engagement by Polish women, who, despite the rise in child benefit by the ruling Law and Justice, are afraid of getting pregnant because of cases where medical care is denied,  Amanda Coakley, award-winning journalist and Europe's Futures fellow at the IWM in Vienna, tells Visegrad Insight.

Całość TYLKO w aplikacji Onet Audio. Subskrybuj pakiet Onet Premium i słuchaj bez limitu. Jeśli złożyć wszystkie elementy globalnej układanki, które doprowadziły do krwawego ataku Hamasu na Izrael, to widać, że ta kolejna wojna na Bliskim Wschodzie jest również pośrednim skutkiem wielkiej rywalizacji Ameryki z Chinami o globalną dominację. Stany Zjednoczone chcą skoncentrować się na rywalizacji z Chińczykami w strefie Pacyfiku, ale w tym celu potrzebują trwałego pokoju w Europie i na Bliskim Wchodzie. Jak twierdzi w rozmowie z Onetem Adam Jasser, zastępca redaktora naczelnego Visegrad Insight, te dążenia Waszyngtonu rozsypują się właśnie w proch na naszych oczach.

Poškodené domy, vyhlásenie mimoriadneho stavu, popadaná omietka, komíny aj rozbité okná. Aj keď pondelkové zemetrasenie na východe Slovenska trvalo len niekoľko sekúnd, škody s ním spojené zrejme nebudú malé. Dôvodom je hlavne jeho sila, ktorú pocítili ľudia v obciach a mestách vzdialených od epicentra aj niekoľko desiatok, či stovák kilometrov. Ako je možné, že na Slovensku k tak silnému zemetraseniu vôbec došlo, dá sa do istej miery predvídať a ako sa pred ním brániť? Eva Frantová sa v podcaste Dobré ráno pýta Kristiána Csicsaya, vedúceho Oddelenia seizmológie Slovenskej akadémie vied. Zdroje zvukov: Markíza, Youtube Odporúčanie: Parlamentné voľby nie sú témou len na Slovensku, ale aj v susednom Poľsku, kde sa o novom zložení vlády bude rozhodovať už túto nedeľu, 15. októbra. Ak by ste sa chceli dozvedieť viac, odporúčam pondelkovú časť podcastu Visegrad Insight. Editori rovnomenného think tanku v nej rozoberajú nielen potenciál jednotlivých strán, ale aj to, ako prípadný volebný výsledok ovplyvní ďalšie smerovanie Európskej únie. – Všetky podcasty denníka SME nájdete na⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ sme.sk/podcasty⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – Odoberajte aj denný newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ SME.sk⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ s najdôležitejšími správami na⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ sme.sk/brifing⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – Odoberajte mesačný podcastový newsletter nielen o novinkách SME na ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠sme.sk/podcastovenovinky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠  – Ďakujeme, že počúvate podcast Dobré ráno.

In this week's podcast, Visegrad Insight editors Wojciech Przybylski and Adam Jasser discuss the potential impact of the Polish parliamentary election next Sunday on the EU's ability to move forward with  its ambitious strategic agenda, including enlargement.

In today's podcast, Visegrad Insight editors Wojciech Przybylski and Adam Jasser discuss the outcome of the Slovak election, which may bring firebrand pro-Russia ex-Prime Minister Fico to power, as well as the potential impact of the huge weekend rally of Polish opposition supporters on the country's parliamentary vote on 15 October. Our guest this week, Richard Giragosian of the Regional Studies Center in Yerevan, an independent think-tank, argues that Azerbajan's military takeover of Nagorno-Karabakh reflects the growing self-confidence of Baku and Russia's dwindling power in the South Caucasus. The West's passive approach so far must be replaced by a resolve to prevent another military attack by Azerbaijan on its democratic neighbour. 

Ukraine and Poland are now going through one of the worst periods of their recent mutual relations. Historical memory clashes have reared their heads again, and controversy about Ukrainian grain exports to and through Poland shows signs of a serious trade dispute. What happened to the seemingly rock-solid relations from a year ago, when Russia started its cruel invasion against Ukraine, and Poland stepped up as one of the leading countries in helping Ukrainian refugees and supporting Ukrainian resistance against the Russian invasion? Our guest on this episode of the Explaining Ukraine podcast is Wojciech Przybylski, a Polish political analyst and author. Przybylski is Editor-in-Chief of Visegrad Insight and President of the Res Publica Foundation. Host: Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and chief editor of UkraineWorld.org UkraineWorld is brought to you by Internews Ukraine, one of the most reputable Ukrainian media NGOs. Support UkraineWorld at patreon.com/ukraineworld. Patrons get exclusive content. Support our volunteer trips to the frontline areas at PayPal: ukraine.resisting@gmail.com

⏩ DAJ GŁOS JAKOŚCI! WSPIERAJ ROZWÓJ NASZEGO KANAŁU YT: https://zrzutka.pl/2xsux9

Writer, editor and prominent intellectual Oksana Forostyna joins Ivan Vejvoda from Lviv to discuss the ongoing situation in Ukraine, her recent essay on Ukrainian jokes and humour and their importance as a shield against trauma and aggression, the political life of the country during wartime; and daily family life during these difficult years.A co-founder of Yakaboo Publishing Oksana was chosen for the New Europe 100 list of outstanding challengers from Central and Eastern Europe in 2014 and made the Top 100 People in Ukrainian Culture list by Novoe Vremya illustrated weekly in 2017. Her debut novel Duty Free was published in Ukraine in December 2012. She is also an author of essays and articles in Ukrainian and English. Forostyna was a former executive editor for Krytyka Journal and for Critical Solutions — an online media project of Krytyka. In 2015, she launched the independent publishing imprint TAO. Formerly a Marcin Król Fellow at Visegrad Insight, she is a Europe's Futures fellow at IWM this year.Find her on twitter @ForostynaRead her essay on Ukrainian jokes at The European Review of BooksIvan Vejvoda  is Head of the Europe's Futures program at IWM where, in cooperation with leading European organisations and think tanks IWM and ERSTE Foundation have joined forces to tackle some of the most crucial topics: nexus of borders and migration, deterioration in rule of law and democracy and European Union's enlargement prospects.The Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) is an independent institute for advanced study in the humanities and social sciences. Since its foundation in 1982, it has promoted intellectual exchange between East and West, between academia and society, and between a variety of disciplines and schools of thought. In this way, the IWM has become a vibrant center of intellectual life in Vienna.The IWM is a community of scholars pursuing advanced research in the humanities and social sciences. For nearly four decades, the Institute has promoted intellectual exchange across disciplines, between academia and society, and among regions of the world. It hosts more than a hundred fellows each year, organizes public exchanges, and publishes books, articles, and digital fora. you can find IWM's website at:https://www.iwm.at/

Weekly outlook by Adam Jasser, Miles R. Maftean and Wojciech Przybylski: Poland's controversial new law, dubbed “Lex Tusk,” allows a government commission to ban individuals from holding public office. This measure has raised alarm bells in EU capitals and Washington, as it potentially hinders opposition candidates from running in upcoming elections. Read more on this Lex Tusk law in Wojciech Przybylski's latest piece on Visegrad Insight. An EU proposal to strip Hungary of its EU presidency due to concerns over the rule of law and its controversial stances on Russia and Ukraine may inadvertently strengthen certain anti-EU narratives, potentially influencing future European Parliament elections. Erdogan's victory in Turkey shows how strong his hold on the country is and how powerful the rhetoric of “making Turkey great again” resonates with voters despite economic hardships. Read up on our foresight project on the future of EU 2024 Parliamentary Elections here.

[Angol nyelvű podcast] Bár a lengyel kormány látszólag török kottából játszva igyekszik kiebrudalni a politikából az ellenzék vezetőjét, a demokráciák idővel kimetszik az ehhez hasonló vadhajtásokat – véli Wojciech Przybylski, a Visegrad Insight főszerkesztője. A lengyel politikai szakértőt a „Lex Tusk”-ként elhíresült törvényről, a török választásokról és a koszovói feszültségről kérdeztük, valamint arról, hogyan lehet megőrizni Európa demokratikus biztonságát az autoriter térhódítás idején. Olvassa el az interjút magyarul: https://hvg.hu/360/20230531_Wojciech_Przybylski_interju_Fulke_podcast_Lengyelorszag_Szerbia_Torokorszag_Magyarorszag_Koszovo_Erdogan_Vucic Wojciech Przybylski írása a Lex Tuskról a Visegrad Insighton: https://visegradinsight.eu/polish-government-to-sideline-opposition-leader-on-faked-charges/ Fizessen elő a hvg360-ra, az első hónapban csupán 360 forintért! https://hvg.hu/360/elofizetes • 0:55: Mi az a „Lex Tuskként” elhíresült törvény, amelyet nemrégiben fogadott el a lengyel parlament és szentesítette az elnök? Milyen alapon akarja félreállítani az ellenzék vezetőjét a lengyel kormánypárt? • 7:36: Csak céltalan ujjal mutogatásról van szó, vagy van olyan konkrét, múltbéli lépése Donald Tusknak, amely alapján el akarja ítélni őt a PiS? • 12:21: Tehát lesz egy parlamenti bizottság, amely eltilthatja a kormány ellenségeit a politikától. Ennyire egyszerű? • 14:52: Maradt esélye még az ellenzéknek a novemberi parlamenti választásokon ezek után? • 19:42: Mindeközben Törökországban is alulmaradt a demokrácia: mik lehetnek a következményei Erdogan újraválasztásának Törökországra és a NATO-ra nézve? • 22:18: A demokratikus visszaesés az oroszok érdekeit szolgálja? • 25:35: Hogyan befolyásolják a koszovói események a balkáni országok európai integrációját? • 30:01: Egyelőre sem a helyi ellenzékek, sem a nemzetközi szervezetek nem tudtak fellépni az európai autokraták; Kaczynski, Vucic, Erdogan, vagy éppen Orbán ellen. Elvesztettük az irányítást a kontinens ezen felén, vagy ezeknek a vezetőknek az egyértelmű hibái szépen sorban, idővel be fogják dönteni a rendszereiket?

The ongoing saga between the EU and Hungary over access to post-pandemic recovery funds continues. Hungary's legal tricks continue with complex judicial reforms added to a bill at the last minute. Historic elections are underway in Turkey. Tensions in the Polish ruling party coalition continue. In the second part of the podcast, Visegrad Insight's Agnieszka Homańska sits down with esteemed journalist Anne Applebaum to discuss the future of Crimea and democracy in the CEE region.

The EU's overall democratic security developments are impacted by the events in CEE countries. As the new EU Strategic Agenda is in preparation, the Visegrad Insight expert group scans for weak signals across multiple scenarios and recommends a relevant course of action. Editorial Director Miles R. Maftean and Deputy Managing Editor Adam Jasser discuss at length the first policy brief on the state of democratic security in the Visegrad countries as part of our Foresight on European Values and Democratic Security project co-funded by the European Union. European unity on defence and security in question. Security issues trump democratic security. Elections in Slovakia and Poland are on the horizon.

Prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, nationalism had been on the rise in Poland. However, the war has slowly led to a shift in the country's politics, with Poland taking in millions of Ukrainian refugees and supplying weapons to Ukrainians on the frontlines. On this episode of The Eastern Front, Giselle, Dalibor, and Iulia speak with Wojciech Przybylski, editor-in-chief of Visegrad Insight and president of the Res Publica Foundation, to discuss key questions concerning the future of Poland and the other Visegrád states—the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia: How has the war affected central European cooperation? How does each Visegrád state perceive the growing Chinese threat? What does the future of these states' relationship with Germany look like?Show notes: Sign up for The Eastern Front's bi-weekly newsletter here and follow us on Twitter here.

Retired General Petr Pavel scored a tight majority in the first round of the Czech presidential election on Saturday, coming ahead of former PM Andrej Babiš. The two are now poised to face each other in the second round of leadership in two weeks' time. Does this show the vibrant nature of democratic politics in Europe or is Czechia's democracy just lucky? A breakdown of the two candidates, with a spotlight on the black campaign of Babiš, along with specifying the nature of Czech presidency from the standpoint of its ceremonial and symbolic function. This week's episode is a precursor for next week's State of Czechia, a week-long discussion hosted by Visegrad Insight including 4 panels across 4 days with 12+ Czech thought leaders, experts, and politicians. Subscribe now with our discount code CEEPOLITICS to register for the event: https://visegradinsight.eu/state-of-czechia/ Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (Editor-in-Chief) and Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director)

2:28 Wojciech Przybylski, szef organizacji Visegrad Insight, o wyborach prezydenckich w Czechach. 33:42 Kremlowskie powiązania Jacka Kotasa. Jak "rosyjski łącznik" PiS przegrał w Sądzie Najwyższym. 1:01:35 Elżbieta Karska, pisowska kandydatka do Trybunału w Strasburgu. Co ją łączy z Rosją? 1:30:40 Poseł Jarosław Krajewski, jego "rodowa" fundacja i... Korea Północna.

In December, Visegrad Insight held a week-long, foresight event bringing together experts, analysts and leading journalists to discuss the future of CEE in the context of the aftermath of the War in Ukraine. Here are the main highlights from the panel experts: What if Ukraine wins? Moderator: Oleksandr Kraiev - Visegrad Insight, Ukrainian PRISM (1:25) Alena Kudzko - GLOBSEC (2:43) Radu Albu-Comanescu - Visegrad Insight, Universitatea Babeș-Bolyai (5:10) Will the War Break Europe's Social Contract? Moderator: Pawel Marczewski - Visegrad Insight, Batory Foundation (9:18) Amanda Coakley - Coda Story - GLOBSEC (9:35) Luke Cooper - LSE Ideas (14:02) Will Europe Ever Be an Equal Partner to the US? Moderator: Michal Matlak - Visegrad Insight, Review of Democracy (16:22) Martin Ehl - Hospodářské noviny (17:04) Georgina Wright - Institut Montaigne (22:50) Who Joins First - Serbia or Ukraine? Moderator: Jan Farfal - Visegrad Insight, University of Oxford (26:06) Milena Lazarevic - European Policy Center (28:00) Isabelle Lassarre - Le Figaro (30:20)

EU energy ministers meet again and fail - once more - to strike a deal to cap the price of natural gas. Prices have soared since Russia invaded Ukraine and the bloc wants to hurt Moscow. But can the deep divisions within the EU be overcome?  Join host Adrian Finighan. Guests:  Cornelia Meyer - CEO of Meyer Resources. Chris Weafer - CEO at Macro-Advisory, a strategic consultancy. Wojciech Przybylski - Editor-in-Chief at Visegrad Insight.

On November 30, Visegrad Insight hosted a public discussion on the Future of Europe in Brussels with Katalin Cseh (MEP for Hungary), Éric Maurice (Manager of the Brussels Office of the Fondation Robert Schuman), and Wojciech Przybylski (Visegrad Insight, Res Publica Foundation). These experts debate policy towards achieving energy security in Europe (1:37). From Monday, the EU's ban for seaborne Russian oil is in force, along with a 60 USD per barrel price cap agreed with the G7 allies. Przybylski comments on how the Hungarian outlier related to support for Ukraine has distanced Visegrad partners (11:48) and the future of regional dialogue (19:07).

Polling by Wall Street Journal shows Republican opposition to arming Ukraine is growing while support is becoming an increasingly partisan issue: 48% of GOP voters now say the U.S. is doing too much to help Ukrainians, up from 6% in the previous survey. While calls to drastically cut military and economic aid might be limited to a small circle of populist voices within the GOP faction, Visegrad Insight's Editorial Director Miles R. Maftean warns not to underestimate the influence of the pro-MAGA contingency on national political debates. The potential shift towards isolationism in US foreign policy and Europe's strategic response in this week's episode.

Last week Xi Jinping consolidated complete control over the Chinese Communist Party and vowed to bring Taiwan's independence to an end, by all means necessary. A sense of danger is felt in Taipei as the country looks to Ukraine and Central Europe for experience in resisting a hostile takeover. Taiwan also announces new generous support for Ukraine through its CEE offices. Against this backdrop, Visegrad Insight participated in the 11th Global Assembly of the World Movement for Democracy - a gathering of democracy fighters from around the world who come together to share experiences and reflect on their struggles against autocracies. It was the first international conference in Taipei since the end of the pandemic lockdown on the island, attended, among others, by Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwanese President and Joseph Wu, minister of foreign affairs, as well as Audrey Tang heading the ministry of digital affairs. We were also present at the Taiwan-Czechia-Ukraine Forum organised by the European Values Center for Security Policy – a Czech think tank with an office in Taipei. Guest speakers: Žygimantas Pavilionis, Deputy Chair of the Committee on European Affairs at the Lithuanian Parliament I-Chung Lai, President of the Prospect Foundation in Taiwan Hosts: Malek Banat, Podcasts editor Wojciech Przybylski, Editor-in-Chief Links: https://www.movedemocracy.org/networking/global-assemblies/11th-global-assembly https://visegradinsight.eu/taiwan-explores-gap-left-by-china-in-acee/

A human chain made up of thousands of students and teachers last week in Budapest is symbolic of Hungary's bottom-up resistance to Viktor Orban's domestic policies. As the Hungarian Forint hits historic low levels against the Euro, and price increases continue to shrink the purchasing power of Hungarians, the Fidesz government is likely to use any ammo available to deflect responsibility. Michał Zabłocki, Climate and Democracy Editor at Visegrad Insight, and Hungarian journalist Viktória Serdült tune in live from Budapest to unpack latest developments.

Viktor Orban has been prime minister of Hungary since 2010, and previously served in that role from 1998 until 2002. In that first stint as Hungarian leader, Orban passed without comment in European Union circles, but his second premiership has seen him come up against the EU on issues related to the rule of law, LGBT rights, and the 2015 migrant crisis. Orban is now fully fledged right-wing populist, but unlike other people who fit that description, sees himself as the international poster boy for this type of politics, making him Hungary's most divisive export. Hungary's future looks, in many ways, very bleak- it has a flatlining economy, largely due to falling population, something likely to lead to scarcity and rising prices in the long run. It is not helped by the fact that Orban is hoping his party, which has little novel or innovative to say about Hungary's economic situation, will stay in power until 2060. Could Orban happen here? Hungary, a nation only thirty years free from communism, and suffering from endemic corruption and economic stagnation, was fertile ground for the right-wing politics of Orban. What about countries like Britain, the Netherlands and the Scandinavian countries, which have much longer traditions of democracy and the rule of law? My guest today is Viktoria Serdült. Viktoria is an author at Visegrad Insight, a media site that focuses on Hungary and its Central European neighbours, as well as HVG, Hungary's leading economic and political weekly. We discuss the seeds of Orban's rise in the fall of Hungarian communism, his manipulation of the media, his government's family planning policy, the chasm in social attitudes that exists across the European continent, and the 2015 migrant crisis. 

Visegrad Insight podcast is back to digest the latest summer developments in CEE and Europe. This week we are joined by Anton Shekhovtsov, Director of the Austria-based Centre for Democratic Integrity and the author of a new report detailing the malign influence of Russian media abroad — ‘RT in Europe and Beyond'. As a small - but not insignificant wave of social protests begins to emerge in Central European cities - Shekhovtsov explains RT's current mode of operations after EU sanctions, how the Kremlin's disinformation campaign is expanding to Africa and future prospects for Russia's propaganda arm to undermine Western support for Ukraine. Sign-up for the official presentation on our latest foresight report outlining four scenarios on the War and the Future of Europe, this Thursday 15 September, at 11:30 AM CET.

NATO summit meeting takes place this week, with security in the region being the main important topic on the docket. The political dimension of CEE turmoil with Czech and Bulgarian governments in peril and the possibility of new elections in these countries. New research coming from Visegrad Insight on China's digital footprint in CEE. A paradigm shift coming from internal developments of policy in CEE countries that alters a European policy - specifically the enlargement policy. The issue with framing the Ukraine crisis as “Peace vs. Justice”. Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (Editor-in-chief) and Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director).

The team summarises the time spent at the first Civil Society Forum based on a recommendation from a special report created by Visegrad Insight. We ask the larger questions in a search for a clarity of purpose for the Three Seas Initiative and what's in the future for it. Polish President Duda on a diplomatic offensive in Slovakia and Ukraine. Visiting Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová, Duda spoke about interconnections and possible Ukrainian membership to the EU. Polish-Ukrainian relationship grows stronger with further privileges for Ukrainians in Poland. Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (Editor-in-Chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), and Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor).

Incumbent President Emmanuel Macron wins a second term, eyes now on the parliamentary elections and its impact on the future of Central Europe. Ruling Slovenian Democratic Party led by PM Janša, conceded and was defeated by Robert Golob and his Freedom Movement. "War selfies" meetings continue in Ukraine. NATO countries meet in Germany to discuss Ukraine's long-term security needs, at the outset of Russia establishing more control on Southern Ukraine. Orban to amend constitution for the 10th time to expand emergency powers. In the second part of the podcast, Petr Čermák, a Researcher at the Charles University in Prague, highlights the upcoming EU Presidency of the Czech Republic and its priorities towards the Western Balkans. This podcast is part of the Visegrad Insight's Western Balkans Futures project that is supported by the International Visegrad Fund. Also participating in the project: Albanian Institute for International Studies (Albania), Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (Serbia), EUROTHINK – Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia), Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Hungary), Prague Security Studies Institute (Czechia), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia). Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (Editor-in-chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), and Tetiana Poliak-Grujić (Project Manager).

Three outstanding Ukranian thought leaders are welcomed to the Viesgrad Insight team as the first cohort of Future of Ukraine Fellows: Bohdan Bernatskyi, Christine Karelska, and Vitaly Portnikov. Elections continue in France and Slovenia. The second phase of the Russian invasion of Ukraine moves forward. Spies from Lithuania in Belarus. In the second part of the podcast, Ledion Krisafi, Researcher at the Albanian Institute for International Studies, discusses Albania's perspectives on EU integration. What are the potential scenarios for the country and its main challenges on the way to gain the EU membership? Listen for insights. This podcast is part of the Visegrad Insight's Western Balkans Futures project that is supported by the International Visegrad Fund. Also participating in the project: Albanian Institute for International Studies (Albania), Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (Serbia), EUROTHINK – Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia), Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Hungary), Prague Security Studies Institute (Czechia), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia). Speakers: Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor), and Tetiana Poliak-Grujić (Project Manager).

Future of Ukraine Fellowship funding continues with nearly 14,000 euros raised out of 20,000 - donate now to help Ukrainian thought leaders continue their work. The first presidential run-off elections in France and what it means for CEE. The EU goes to Ukraine. Controversial air siren tests in Poland on anniversary of Smolensk plane crash. Sweden and Finland debate joining NATO intensifies. As the war in Ukraine rages for over a month now, we sit down with Tomáš Strážay, Director of the Bratislava-based Slovak Foreign Policy Association, to discuss its impact on the Western Balkans region. Will anything change in terms of the EU accession for the region and should we expect any destabilisation actions by Russia there? Listen to the podcast to learn more. This podcast is part of the Visegrad Insight's Western Balkans Futures project that is supported by the International Visegrad Fund. Also participating in the project: Albanian Institute for International Studies (Albania), Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (Serbia), EUROTHINK – Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia), Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Hungary), Prague Security Studies Institute (Czechia), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia). Speakers: Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor), and Tetiana Poliak-Grujić (Project Manager).

Future of Ukraine Fellowship funding continues with 12,500 euros raised out of 20,000. Elections in Serbia and Hungary lead to victories for Viktor Orban and Aleksandar Vucic. The Warsaw-Budapest axis tilted for the foreseeable future. Scenarios for Serbian response to Russian invasion of Ukraine after Vucic's victory. Tensions rise with Russian minorities in Estonia and Latvia. Lithuania cuts off all Russian gas. In the second half of the podcast, we focus on the two elections in the region with two interviews. The first is with Edit Zgut, a doctoral researcher at the Polish Academy of Sciences, who highlights the unfree and unfair Hungarian elections and Hungary's geopolitical future after Orban's victory. The second interview is with renowned Serbian journalist currently working with Reuters, Aleksandar Vasović. The conversation revolves around April 3 elections in Serbia and touches upon potential Serbian sanctions against Russia. This podcast is part of the Visegrad Insight's Western Balkans Futures project that is supported by the International Visegrad Fund. Also participating in the project: Albanian Institute for International Studies (Albania), Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (Serbia), EUROTHINK – Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia), Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Hungary), Prague Security Studies Institute (Czechia), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia). Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (Editor-in-chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor), and Tetiana Poliak-Grujić (Project Manager).

US President Joe Biden stuck in the middle of criticism after his speech in Warsaw. The latest on upcoming elections in Hungary and Serbia. Orban's gerrymandering make opposition victory near impossible. Hungary in the neighbouring political crosshairs as Polish President Duda and Czechia Defense Minister Jana Cernochova criticise Orban's Russia-friendly stance. In the second half of the podcast, Dimitar Nikolovski, Executive Director of EUROTHINK - Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia) discusses the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell's most recent visit to Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina and North Macedonia. Listen to how it connects with Visegrad Insight's most recent Five Scenarios for Western Balkans 2030 report. This podcast is part of the Visegrad Insight's Western Balkans Futures project that is supported by the International Visegrad Fund. Also participating in the project: Albanian Institute for International Studies (Albania), Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence (Serbia), EUROTHINK – Center for European Strategies (North Macedonia), Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (Hungary), Prague Security Studies Institute (Czechia), Slovak Foreign Policy Association (Slovakia). Speakers: Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor), and Tetiana Poliak-Grujić (Project Manager).

The Future of Ukraine Fellowship announced, with Visegrad Insight putting up 10,000 euros and asking listeners to double this amount for several paid editorial positions on the team for Ukrainian thought leaders to tell the "untold stories" of the war. Poland as the humanitarian superpower of the crisis, with millions of refugees from Ukraine seeking safe harbor. The old friendship of Hungary-Poland is strained with Orban cozying up to Putin. Ex-prime minister Boyko Borisov of Bulgaria has been detained by authorities, suspected that he has mishandled EU funds. Discussion on the controversial op-ed by Iryna Podolyak and a response from Marcin Krol fellow Pavel Havlicek. On the second half of the podcast, Adéla Klečková, a security analyst who focuses on hybrid warfare and is a non-resident fellow of the German Marshall Fund, discusses the current cyber warfare situation in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Adela assesses the current cyber operations in Ukraine and explains why this is new terrain in the field of warfare, as hundreds of thousands of hacker volunteers join the fight. Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (editor-in-chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor).

More trouble in Hungarian electoral campaign for the Orban government's “strategic calmness” in response to Russian invasion of Ukraine. Soviet-made drone flies over Hungary and crashes in Croatian capital, Zagreb, with a 120 kilo bomb on board. Former PM Donald Tusk travels to Hungary to endorse Peter Márki-Zay. How the Hungarian poor pay for the rich in terms of tax burden. Yavoriv training ground in Ukraine attacked by eight Russian missiles, 25 kilometers from the Polish border. The second half of the podcast gathers some highlights from Visegrad Insight's State of Hungary Conference. In it, you'll hear about the state of Hungarian democracy, politics, and defense. The expert panelists are: Andras Bozoki (Central European University), Edit Zgut (Polish Academy of Sciences), Tamás Csiki Varga (Institute for Strategic and Defense Studies), Weronika Grzebalska (Polish Academy of Sciences) and Péter Siklósi (Defence Advisor of the Hungarian Permanent Delegation to NATO). Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (editor-in-chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor).

Slovakia's surprising turn to NATO. European states debate sending old Russian aircraft to Ukraine. On Friday, Viktor Orban claimed, ‘We're caught in the crossfire between major geopolitical players' and accused Poland of provoking Moscow by pushing Ukraine's independence from Russia. As European and American press how ask whether Putin is really "sick", we discuss the psychology behind Putin - and what Ukrainians have known for many years. The second half of the podcast highlights one of the panels from Visegrad Insight's State of Hungary Conference on foreign policy, trade, and alliances. Daniel Hegedus (the German Marshall Fund of the U.S.) and Dalibor Rohac (American Enterprise Institute) discuss the degree and quality of Hungary's inclusion in global alliances. Hungary's multi-vector foreign-policy is highlighted and zeroes in on the Orban regime's domestic and international narrative that challenged the Western alliance network for Hungary. Speakers: Wojciech Przybylski (editor-in-chief), Miles R. Maftean (Editorial Director), Kamil Jarończyk (Managing Editor).

The Conference on the Future of Europe - a multi-year consultation that aims to set an agenda for the reform of EU policies and institutions in the medium to long term by inviting participation from EU citizens and civil society - is ongoing following the launch of its digital platform in April 2021. Does the conference represent a new frontier in deliberative democracy or does it give undue prominence to the preoccupations and divisive rhetoric of outlier political movements that do not represent majority EU opinion? Here, Wojciech Przybylski - Editor-In-Chief of Visegrad/Insight and Europe's Futures Fellow at the IWM - discusses these concerns with Ivan Vejvoda and expands upon his own research on the future of the continent: will Europe remain the peace project it was conceived as, or will strategic autonomy confer upon it the status of superpower?This Podcast was recorded prior to the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.In addition to his work at Visegrad, Wojciech Przybylski is chairman of the Res Publica Foundation in Warsaw.You can find him on twitter @wprzybylski Read more of his work at Visegrad/Insight here.Ivan Vejvoda  is Head of the Europe's Futures program at IWM where, in cooperation with leading European organisations and think tanks IWM and ERSTE Foundation have joined forces to tackle some of the most crucial topics: nexus of borders and migration, deterioration in rule of law and democracy and European Union's enlargement prospects.The Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) is an independent institute for advanced study in the humanities and social sciences. Since its foundation in 1982, it has promoted intellectual exchange between East and West, between academia and society, and between a variety of disciplines and schools of thought. In this way, the IWM has become a vibrant center of intellectual life in Vienna.The IWM is a community of scholars pursuing advanced research in the humanities and social sciences. For nearly four decades, the Institute has promoted intellectual exchange across disciplines, between academia and society, and among regions of the world. It hosts more than a hundred fellows each year, organizes public exchanges, and publishes books, articles, and digital fora. you can find IWM's website at:https://www.iwm.at/