{"podcast":{"title":"Brussels Playbook Podcast","slug":"brussels-playbook-podcast-730322","podcast_index_feed_id":730322,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/ASD6061651607","website_url":"https://www.politico.eu/eu-confidential-podcast/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/457b396e-5e02-11ef-9ea9-13174c9e6348/image/51c7306a884c9c73a7da2290ebca2b8d.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"POLITICO","episode_count":640,"summary":"POLITICO’s daily audio briefing on what’s moving Brussels — and why it matters. The Brussels Playbook Podcast is the audio extension of the Brussels Playbook newsletter. Hosted by POLITICO's chief EU correspondent, Zoya Sheftalovich, the podcast runs Monday through Thursday, offering a clear, reporting-driven guide to EU politics in under 15 minutes. It’s a perfect companion for your morning coffee. Each episode takes listeners inside the decisions, power shifts and debates shaping the day in Brussels — and explains how they connect to national capitals across Europe. Clear, conversational and shaped by reporting from the heart of the EU, the Brussels Playbook Podcast brings context to EU politics as your day begins. On Fridays, the same feed features a longer episode that goes deeper into the week’s biggest themes, offering context and analysis beyond the daily news cycle — with Sarah Wheaton behind the mic.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-18T10:19:02.663938+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/brussels-playbook-podcast-730322"},"episode":{"title":"Europe gears up for its China counterpunch","slug":"europe-gears-up-for-its-china-counterpunch","published_at":"2026-09-01T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/brussels-playbook-podcast-730322/europe-gears-up-for-its-china-counterpunch","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/brussels-playbook-podcast-730322","url":"https://www.politico.eu/podcast/brussels-playbook-podcast/","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/POLL9131620528.mp3","summary":"Brussels is getting increasingly worried about its economic relationship with Beijing ... but the bloc doesn’t want to bring out the big guns just yet. While the EU already has the infamous 'trade bazooka' at its disposal, the Commission is considering a new tool to address Chinese overcapacity and dangerous dependencies. Our colleague Camille Gijs has spoken with EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič to learn more. Hosts Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart discuss what he said in the interview. Next, EU defense ministers are meeting in Ireland today, and Ukraine is right at the top of the agenda. The big question will be whether the bloc can help ease Kyiv’s shortage of missile interceptors. And finally, is Europe’s most prominent right-wing think tank, MCC Brussels, imploding ... or is it morphing into something new? Question? Comment? Get in touch on WhatsApp here, or at +32 491 05 06 29. This episode was produced by Dionis Sturis and Saga Ringmar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices","meta_description":"Brussels is getting increasingly worried about its economic relationship with Beijing ... but the bloc doesn’t want to bring out the big guns just yet. Wh…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":947,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/brussels-playbook-podcast-730322/episodes/europe-gears-up-for-its-china-counterpunch/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/brussels-playbook-podcast-730322/europe-gears-up-for-its-china-counterpunch.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}