The EU's approach to the Belarus crisis and a new transatlantic battle over sanctions on Iran are up for debate in this week's episode, while Germany's Environment Minister Svenja Schulze sets out her plans to steer EU climate policy.

Security forces in Belarus have cracked down violently on protesters who took to the streets after strongman Alexander Lukashenko claimed reelection as president in a vote widely condemned as fraudulent. POLITICO's Andrew Gray in Brussels and Matthew Karnitschnig in Berlin are joined by Jan Cienski in Warsaw to analyze the EU's handling of the crisis, as it seeks to show solidarity with the protesters but avoid a confrontation with Russia. We also get a firsthand report from Belarus from POLITICO contributor Sergei Kuznetsov.

The panel also examines U.S. plans to put Europe in a tight spot by triggering a U.N. process to re-impose sanctions on Tehran.

On the climate front, POLITICO's Kalina Oroschakoff talks us through her recent interview with Svenja Schulze, who's trying to get EU members to agree more ambitious emissions targets while Germany holds the bloc's rotating presidency.

Ep 164: Belarus crisis — Germany's environment minister — Iran sanctions

We take you to the Republican National Convention (RNC) in this episode of our pop-up podcast series on the U.S. elections, hosted by Ryan Heath, and break down what is motivating Trump voters in 2020 — including in key states like Pennsylvania. We also examine the part played by party conventions at the heart of America's political process.

Alongside highlights from the RNC, you'll hear from Meridith McGraw, White House reporter at POLITICO; Tony Fratto, communications strategist and former deputy press secretary to President George W. Bush; and Daniel Twining, president of the International Republican Institute.

We'll publish a new episode in this pop-up series every Tuesday until Election Day. And, of course, EU Confidential will be back this and every Thursday as usual.

Campaign Confidential #2: Republican National Convention — Pennsylvania voters — American democracy

EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan's resignation, the "golfgate" controversy surrounding his decision and what this means for the European Commission is the hot topic of this week's episode. POLITICO's Rym Momtaz, Matthew Karnitschnig and Christian Oliver walk us through the twists and turns and reveal the real driving forces behind Hogan's decision to bow out.

Our featured guest is transatlantic expert Dan Hamilton, who sat down with Matthew Karnitschnig in Berlin to discuss the current state of U.S. relations with Germany and the EU, and what November's presidential election could mean for future relations with Europe and NATO.

Ep 165: Golfgate and Hogan's resignation — Trump-era transatlantic relations

Our third episode dedicated to the U.S. election, hosted by Ryan Heath, breaks down the 'perfect storm' of issues — a pandemic, voting troubles and foreign interference — that have experts on edge.

The last presidential election campaign in 2016 involved huge debates about issues like immigration, power plays over the future direction of the Supreme Court and ethics — remember Hillary Clinton’s emails? In 2020, it’s the election mechanics that are front and center of political debate.

Laying out what experts are watching as this election unfolds is Garrett Graff, former POLITICO magazine editor, who recently outlined in the magazine "8 Big Reasons Election Day 2020 Could Be a Disaster." We also check in with disinformation expert Lisa Kaplan, founder and CEO of Alethea Group, about foreign influence tactics in 2020 compared to 2016, and with Ellen Weintraub, a commissioner on the Federal Election Commission charged with enforcing campaign finance law in federal elections.

Campaign Confidential #3: A perfect storm — Foreign influence — Absentee ballots

A firsthand account of French President Emmanuel Macron's latest diplomatic push in Lebanon; the poisoning of opposition activist Alexei Navalny; and McMafia author Misha Glenny on the political leaders he calls "iron men" — it's a packed episode of EU Confidential to welcome you back from summer holidays.

POLITICO's Rym Momtaz sat down with Macron on his plane as they headed to Beirut earlier this week. Rym gives us the inside scoop on the trip and breaks down Macron's risky mission to resolve Lebanon's multiple interlocking crises.

POLITICO's Matthew Karnitschnig and Andrew Gray discuss how Germany and Europe will respond now that Berlin has concluded Navalny was poisoned with a nerve agent from the Novichok group.

Misha Glenny, author of the nonfiction book McMafia that inspired a big-budget TV thriller series, is our special guest to discuss his latest project: A six-part Audible series, The Rise of the Iron Men.

Glenny's definition of the iron men — they're all men, he notes — are populists who came to power thanks to democracy and then set about undermining it.

He starts the series with Hungary's Viktor Orbán, before going on to profile Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, India's Narendra Modi and ... the U.K.'s Boris Johnson.

Ep 166: Macron's Lebanon gamble — Navalny poisoning — Misha Glenny's Iron Men

On this episode of our pop-up series on the U.S. elections, hosted by Ryan Heath, we explore the polarization of American politics and ask one simple question: Why has this happened?

You'll hear from Kristen Soltis Anderson, political pollster and co-founder of research firm Echelon Insights, as well as POLITICO's Tim Alberta, who's been covering the Republican Party for over a decade — we talk about his recent piece in POLITICO Magazine, "The Grand Old Meltdown": https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/08/24/republicanmeltdown-trump-convention-400039

The regular EU Confidential podcast will be back in your feed on Thursday — and Campaign Confidential is with you every Tuesday all the way through to election day.

Campaign Confidential #4: Why is America more polarized than ever?

We have a special message for those of you who listen to EU Confidential on SoundCloud. For more than three years, SoundCloud has been our host, the online platform that stored all the audio files of our episodes. But we've now switched hosts, which means you won't find us on SoundCloud any more.

The good news is there are lots of other places to find us!

Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/politicos-eu-confidential/id1244862657

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Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/politico-europe-2/eu-confidential

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POLITICO: https://www.politico.eu/podcast/

If you have any trouble finding us, just email us at podcast@politico.eu.

Thanks for listening, and talk to you soon somewhere else.

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