From ‘Fortress Austria’ to ‘Fortress Europe’?

In this week’s episode of EU Confidential, we tackle the complex forces shaping Europe’s future — where political shifts, migration and escalating conflict in neighboring regions are all colliding. As tensions in the Middle East intensify, POLITICO’s Opinion Editor Jamie Dettmer reports from Tel Aviv, breaking down the situation on the ground and the prospect of an all-out war in the region.

We then shift focus to Austria, where the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) secured a significant election victory on a “Fortress Austria” platform. Host Sarah Wheaton and Theresa Kuhn, professor of modern European history and politics at the University of Amsterdam, discuss what drove voters to the FPÖ and how Austria joins a growing bloc of European Union countries where far-right parties are reshaping the political landscape. What could this mean for Europe’s broader approach to migration?

The episode also continues our “Berlaymont Who’s Who” miniseries, with Kathryn Carlson, our financial regulation reporter, introducing Magnus Brunner, Austria’s former finance minister, who could soon become the EU’s next commissioner for migration.

Plus, our NATO correspondent Stuart Lau sits down for an exclusive interview with former NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.

Further reading:

Israel sends troops into Lebanon — but its real target is Iran, by Jamie Dettmer

Israel risks a long fight in Lebanon, by Jamie Dettmer

Israel vows ‘consequences’ for Iran after missile barrage, by Jamie Dettmer

NATO’s Stoltenberg has parting words for Europe: Don’t fear Trump, work with him, by Stuart Lau

Sorry, Mark Rutte, there’ll be no honeymoon at NATO, by Stuart Lau