This week, Mark Leonard joins forces with Jeremy Shapiro, ECFR’s director of research and US programme director, to unpack two momentous geopolitical disruptions. First, a stunning scandal emerged from a Signal group chat, where senior US officials—including the vice president, secretary of defence and CIA director—carelessly looped in the Atlantic’s editor-in-chief to discuss military strikes in Yemen. Among their plans, the chat laid bare the US administration’s disdain for Europe and schemes to extract economic advantages from allies—while exposing a shocking disregard for protocol.

Mark and Jeremy then turn their focus to Riyadh, where whispers of a US-Russia pact are surfacing. This could mean reviving Russia’s agricultural markets, securing a Black Sea ceasefire and halting assaults on energy infrastructure. But alarm bells are ringing and Ukraine might be left in the cold. Worse yet, the Trump administration seems to be drifting away from supporting European defence while cosying up to Putin. Could the US truly be forsaking its historic role as Europe’s guardian?

This podcast was recorded on 26 March.

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