Over the past several months, our community has become something larger than a Substack.
We have brought subscribers together in Washington, Chicago, and New York for serious discussions about the Iran war, escalation, American politics, and the changing balance of power.
Now we are taking that conversation to Brussels and the European Parliament.
This is an in-person event only.
The Brussels Strategy Seminar
Populism, the U.S. Crisis, and What This Means for Europe
Wednesday, September 9
12:00 PM Brussels time
European Parliament — Brussels
I will be joining Aaron Maté for a panel discussion on two developments that increasingly cannot be separated:
the Iran war and the rise of violent populism in the United States.
The central question is what these developments mean for Europe’s economic and strategic future.
We will discuss:
• how the Iran war is changing the strategic balance around Europe, including the consequences of a prolonged conflict and continuing disruption of energy markets;
• how America’s growing political crisis and violent populism could affect U.S. foreign policy and America’s reliability as a European partner;
• how the United States’ internal political divisions could constrain Washington’s ability to sustain long-term commitments abroad;
• and what Europe should expect as the United States confronts both an increasingly difficult international environment and a deeply fractured domestic political system.
This is particularly important because Europe is being forced to think more seriously about its own strategic position: energy security, defense, economic resilience, and the future of the transatlantic relationship are increasingly connected.
The European Parliament itself describes its Brussels campus as the center of the EU’s transnational democratic institutions and debates.
A Special Opportunity for Subscribers
The European Parliament is making a limited number of places available specifically for members of my Substack community to attend the panel in person.
You will need to fill out a registration form below and, if accepted, a separate registration form for the EU to gain admission into the European Parliament.
You will also need to cover your own travel expenses for this event.
Seating Is Limited
Attendance is limited and so priority is for:
Founding Members;
Annual subscribers;
Monthly subscribers;
Free subscribers if seats remain available.
There is no additional charge for subscribers who are selected.
Because seating is extremely limited, you must complete the registration form to be considered for one of the limited number of places.
Registration
Please complete the form below:
REGISTER HERE:
Submitting the form does not guarantee admission. Places will be allocated from the pool of registered subscribers.
After the Panel
I would also very much like to meet the members of our community who attend.
If we can find an appropriate space nearby, I will organize an informal gathering after the panel—possibly at a nearby restaurant—so that we can continue the conversation together.
This will not be another reception or networking event.
It will be a chance to have the kind of serious conversation about America’s political crisis, the Iran war, and Europe’s future that is difficult to have on television or in a written post.
I am particularly looking forward to this discussion because the questions I have been examining in my research on violent populism and in my work on the Iran war and escalation are increasingly converging.
What happens when America’s political crisis begins to affect its ability to exercise power abroad?
And perhaps even more importantly:
What does that mean for Europe?
I hope you will join me in Brussels.
— Robert Pape