Max Bergmann

Ah ok, here's one. And I think this is the only possible heart of a campaign that would win over both the UK and Brussels, as it would have to do. bsky.app/profile/iand...

The short version is, be careful of discussing what you don't want because that just looks like exceptionalist UK all over again. Which is true, and all the more reason why the absence of pro-EU voices making strong pro-EU arguments is even more striking.

There is no mystery about what's going on here. It's a mob hit. Mob boss says someone teach that guy a lesson. Mob lawyer steps out of the room. Capo in the room says sure, I'll do it. The deed gets done. Later, mob boss says he knows no nothing. Mob lawyer says no foreknowledge.

NOW: The #Eurofile podcast is live! Host @maxbergmann.bsky.social welcomes @ilariamazzocco.bsky.social + @tobiasgehrke.bsky.social to discuss what a tougher European stance on China means for transatlantic economic cooperation. Tune in below. www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_y-...

New from me on the Starlink/shield fiasco. To paraphrase Talleyrand, it is worse than a crime; it is a mistake. The long term blowback on the United States will be immense. www.csis.org/analysis/thr...

I feel like no one told me and definitely no one asked my permission when "compute" became a noun. Like I'm a friend to all nerds. But this was a little out of hand. And shld have been reined in.

Henry Foy is back on The #Eurofile to break down what makes journalism in Brussels unique, what it takes to cover Europe's capital, and what it reveals about both the city and the EU itself. Tune in below. 🎧 @henryjfoy.ft.com @maxbergmann.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cqnk...

Confirmed: von der Leyen tells press conference following the European Council the EU will develop a new weapon to "immediately" limit access to the single market "when it's in the union's interest" The kill switch aimed at China is coming. Understand goal is to present this yr

"Many traders learned the hard way that politics can win out over economics." www.economist.com/finance-and-...

Story: How China and the EU pressed pause on trade war – and what it took to get there www.scmp.com/economy/glob...

New Russian Roulette episode out! @maxbergmann.bsky.social and I spoke with @hannanotte.bsky.social about her new book, We Shall Outlast Them: Putin’s Global Campaign to Defeat the West, and Russia’s evolving global strategy, partnerships, and challenge to the West. w/@erep.csis.org

BREAKING: European Parliament significantly toughens China position, adopted by landslide FOR 454 AGAINST 86 ABSTAIN 110 Report says China is “decisive enabler” of Russia & backs a “continuous [European] naval presence and joint exercises” in and around the Taiwan Strait

New polling on how Europeans view Trump % with a favorable | unfavorable opinion of Trump, Sep 2026 🇫🇷 France 12% | 79% (net -67) 🇪🇸 Spain 12% | 86% (-74) 🇬🇧 Britain 10% | 85% (-75) 🇩🇪 Germany 9% | 87% (-78) 🇮🇹 Italy 8% | 84% (-76) 🇩🇰 Denmark 4% | 95% (-91) yougov.com/en-us/articl...

"As with other recent deals struck by the Trump administration, the devil will be in the details and implementation of the agreement. The parties’ diverging framings may foreshadow diverging interpretations of the legal text," writes Otto Svendsen. Read more: https://bit.ly/4rTdcIz

Denmark is fast becoming the new Norway. Battery electric vehicles are approaching 90% of new sales. Substantially ahead of the next EU cluster (BE, NL, FI, SE) at 50%. european-clean-tech-tracker.bruegel.org/s/PJ7Luw

Sánchez calls elections for November 29. Odds strongly against him but history suggests it would be unwise to write off the great survivor of Spanish politics entirely. The timing is typically canny: seizing moment where the national conversation has turned from migration to housing.

In a world where China is growing off the back of net exports, this is a powerful deterrent. So France and Germany are right to buttress the flurry of forthcoming trade measures with a second strike option in case China retaliates outside the rules.

Who knows where we end up in terms of instruments. But the fact that the terms "kill switch" & "torture chamber" are being thrown around to describe the EU's China strategy suggests we're really through the looking glass

In a best-case scenario, durable U.S. defense engagement with Greenland paves the way for a broader NATO role in the territory. However, much will depend on the implementation of the agreement in the coming months and years, argue CSIS experts. Read: https://bit.ly/4huKXuY

The Netherlands and Finland have also crossed the 50% mark. France, Ireland, Sweden and Portugal are also rapidly approaching the 50% mark. If Austria and perhaps even Germany continue their current trend, they may cross that line this year, too.

The end of When Harry met Sally is the UK-EU relationship. Frank Sinatra playing "it had to be (EU)." Meg Ryan: "I know you're feeling lonely. But you can't just show up here, tell me you love me, and expect that to make everything alright. It doesn't work this way!" www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4OD...

"The electrification of road freight is emerging as a structural force that could undermine long-term oil demand across the world." China's goals are EVs to be 50% of truck sales and 20% of its truck fleet by 2030. EVs may be 50% of truck sales in 2026. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature... #energysky

That juxtaposition of "a Europe of nation states, a Europe capable of being a genuine global power" is striking. Does he truly believe these things are positively correlated? How does he think such an EU would function? Or is it just that after so many years I still haven't got used to cakeism?

On The #Eurofile: Max + Lexi discuss Ursula von der Leyen's State of the Union address. Plus, Emily Benson joins the show with an update on uneasy state of U.S.-EU tech relations. Full episode below. @maxbergmann.bsky.social @lexi-linafelter.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=abSq...

Gross outcome. France makes it really hard to defend France.

The Iran war is rapidly eating US readiness. The blockade is tying up the fleet, forces are stretched, maintenance deferred, and critical munitions are running low — all risking the US military being less prepared for future crises. My research in @bloomberg.com: www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...

One of those things you don’t notice until it’s pointed out

Congrats to all those who celebrate the end of DC summer

The summit will not fail because expectations have been whittled down to almost nothing. Beijing would likely prefer a long list of deliverables and Washington a shorter list, but neither has much ambition for path-breaking arrangements, writes Scott Kennedy. Read: https://bit.ly/4ymgFlz

russian culture manifests itself This is a polling station, in case you are wondering, in what moscow wants you to call an “election”

Isn't this the deal the US has had over Greenland since WW2? It sounds *awfully* similar to the existing security arrangement.

The Eurofile podcast is very good again. @maxbergmann.bsky.social with Emily Benson on the latest re transatlantic tech. Here is a summary and the odd disagreement. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-associate-european-union-and-a/id1664471780?i=1000790398594 1/12

Just over 24 hours to go! If QMV makes you go "OMG", you can't resist a good trilogue & you read the OJEU while drinking your morning OJ, this may be the job for you

It's not an election, it's a Special Political Operation. I'm baffled by the Western commentators who act as though Putin is on tenterhooks, waiting to see whether his war of aggression against Ukraine has cost him votes in Nakhuygrad South-West. @andrewchak.bsky.social offers an antidote...

The State of the European Union feels like some bizarro future Sci-fi world. Modern space-age parliament, a leader that shuffles between three languages, and a speech that sanely and astutely assesses issues, lays out ideas and weirdly acknowledges climate change and supports democracy. Terrifying!

It looks like the EU and Canada are going steady.

SOTEU speeches represent a good indicator of Europe's policy priorities. Here it is a quick overview of how priority areas have evolved since 2020. Tomorrow at 14:00-15:00 CET we will unpack the speech with Bruegel colleagues in a live podcast - link here: www.bruegel.org/event/sound-...

Greek finance minister Pierrakakis encourages Germany to undertake reforms. The country had „enormous potential“. 🧑‍🍳💋 www.handelsblatt.com/cmsid/100253...

My new book; out on October 22nd

And another one www.dw.com/en/bulgaria-...

Global War on Terror 1 was craaaaazy www.slowboring.com/p/911-was-a-...

But regulating tech will just create loads of bureaucratic red tape, making it much costlier and time-consuming to destroy humanity.

EU money buying American weapons for Ukraine. Whatever it takes.

Lots of gas stations in Russia sell only diesel.