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Peter Walkenhorst @pwalkenhorst.bsky.social · 18/06/2026

Was verraten die ersten sechs Monate nach der neuen US-National Security Strategy (NSS) und National Defense Strategy (NDS) über die Zukunft der transatlantischen Beziehungen? Mit @brandonbohrn.bsky.social gehe ich dieser Frage in unserem neuen Policy Brief nach. 👇 bst-europe.eu/de/europe-in...

bst-europe.eu

Six Months After the NSS and NDS: Navigating U.S. Volatility and Preserving Transatlantic Relations

The release of the U.S. National Security Strategy (NSS) and National Defense Strategy (NDS) at the turn of 2026 marked a critical inflection point in transatlantic relations. Together, they provided ...

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Finbarr Bermingham @fbermingham.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Eye-opening findings in Bertelsmann Stiftung survey on the eve of EU leaders debate on China 77% in the EU feel their countries need to reduce dependency on China "even if it hurt your economy in the short term", including 80% in Germany, 84% in France, 72% in Spain

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Also, if you have any questions on other demographic/political leaning data at the country level, please let me know. My e-mail address is brandon.bohrn@bertelsmann-stiftung.de.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Finbarr, thank you for sharing our study. It's an interesting point here. As we develop our questionnaire, we could potentially use a similar framing, ie "increased consumer costs". The only hiccup is that we'd likely have trouble comparing to previous years' results with the re-formulation.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

Joined Welt TV earlier today to discuss G7 Summit takeaways from Évian and what they mean for transatlantic cooperation on Ukraine and Iran. Also highlighted new Bertelsmann research on European views of the US + our policy brief on 🇺🇸 policy toward 🇪🇺 six months after the NSS/NDS. Links below ⬇️

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

5/6 For the full analysis and recommendations, please access our policy brief here: bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

4/6 We highlight three clear priorities for Europe (EU/MS/TCs): 1. Define collective European red lines and credible response mechanisms 2. Strengthen strategic resilience while preserving transatlantic cooperation 3. Broaden engagement across the U.S. policy landscape

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

3/6 Admin prios, budgetary realities, congressional constraints and ad hoc pres decision-making often pull in different directions. 🇪🇺 challenge is not simply a more assertive 🇺🇸, but a structurally more volatile policymaking environment that creates uncertainty across sec, econ and political domains.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

2/6 The release of the NSS and NDS at turn of 2026 marked a key inflection point in transatlantic relations: the first official codification of the second Trump admin’s strategic priorities toward Europe. Six months later, however, US policy remains unpredictable, contradictory, and fragmented.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

🚨 New Policy Brief 🚨 As G7 leaders convene this week, questions around transatlantic coordination, strategic resilience, and US policy volatility feel especially timely. Thus pleased to share our latest BSt Europe Policy Brief with @pwalkenhorst.bsky.social 🧵 bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

bst-europe.eu

Six Months After the NSS and NDS: Navigating U.S. Volatility and Preserving Transatlantic Relations

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Gesine Weber @gesineweber.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

This study by @bertelsmannst.bsky.social shows: political support for strategic autonomy does exist. Policymakers should seize this moment for ambitious steps. 73% say EU should ‘go its own way’ after decades of close cooperation with US (+10% from 2024) bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

bst-europe.eu

Europe’s Call for Greater Independence

In a world increasingly shaped by war, confrontation and great-power rivalry, public opinion across the European Union points in one direction: greater independence. Nearly three in four Europeans now...

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

On this #EuropeDay, we've just released fresh data referencing European polling data from Sept 2024 through Mar 2026 on perceptions of the EU's role in the world, its most valuable partners, the transatlantic relationship, and China as well. Access the full report here: bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

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Etienne Höra @etiennehoera.d-64.social · 26/02/2026

Was kommt nach dem Zollurteil des Supreme Court auf die EU zu? Deals sind allenfalls Risikomanagement. Die Aufgaben für die EU: geoökonomisch glaubwürdig werden, sich nicht von Dritten ausspielen lassen, Abhängigkeiten abbauen. Heute in @faznet.bsky.social Weltwirtschaft: www.faz.net/pro/weltwirt...

faz.net

Zollchaos: Was die EU jetzt tun sollte

Auf die EU kommt eine Phase der Unsicherheit zu. Sie sollte sich auf weitere Handelskonflikte mit den Amerikanern einstellen und ihre Verwundbarkeiten angehen, rät ein Europaexperte der Bertelsmann St...

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Etienne Höra @etiennehoera.d-64.social · 19/01/2026

How should the EU react to Trump’s tariff threats over Greenland? Get out of self-deterrence, launch the Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI) and focus on concrete levers instead of the next abstract tools debate. This is an explainer how this could work: 1/ 🧵

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BSt Europe @bst-europe.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

New policy brief! Against the backdrop of the recently released US national security strategy, we examine the impact of USAID's closure for 🇪🇺 engagement in the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership. Full publication here: bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

bst-europe.eu

After USAID: Europe’s Moment to Lead

The 2025 closure of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has reshaped the global development landscape and created a strategic inflection point for Europe close to home. With...

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Struck by this line in @maxbergmann.bsky.social's latest on the implications of the Trump admin's NSS. This take - implications of US democracy program cuts in Europe - pairs well with our latest policy brief "After USAID: Europe's Moment to Lead", just released today: bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

USAID’s closure upended the dev. landscape and decades of transatlantic partnership. But it also opened space for leadership. If 🇪🇺 prepares for longer shift, improves delivery and backs dem. resilience in WB6 and EaP, it can do more than fill the gap—it can strengthen the 🇪🇺 project for the future.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Third: Invest in democratic resilience Independent media, watchdogs, civic networks—these are the anchors of reform, enlargement and institutional stability. They’re also the exact actors losing support. Without them, WB6 and EaP become more vulnerable to dem. backsliding and authorit. actors.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Second: Close Europe’s political and delivery gaps. A Team Europe approach—aligning EU, national govt's, philanthropic partners—can restore weight and speed. Further, moving beyond short, annual project contracts toward multi-year partnerships that give trusted civil society groups stability.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

So what should Europe do now? First: Accept this isn’t a temporary US reset. It’s a generational policy shift. Even after 2028, the old USAID model is unlikely to return. Europe must plan not for a pause—but for a new era of transatlantic asymmetry.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Meanwhile, authoritarian competitors and illiberal actors are not waiting. Russia exploits energy and information dependencies. China leverages infrastructure finance for influence. The U.S. withdrawal risks and shifting priorities (NSS) threaten to accelerate these trends.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Europe faces a widening civic vacuum. 🇪🇺 disburses more ODA. True, but its assistance is fragmented, with BRU and natl agencies running parallel systems. USAID’s strength wasn’t money but speed, flexibility, field presence and pol. weight—now gone. Further, dem. budgets are on decline in 🇪🇺 too.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Civil society in WB6 & EaP felt the impact instantly. Per a 2025 GMF survey: • 70% of NGOs delayed or halted activities • 43% preparing layoffs • 16% cut staff Media, human rights rule of law—precisely the sectors hardest to rebuild once they’re gone.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

And the impact for Europe close to home? In 2023, the U.S. provided $370.8 million for democracy, human rights, and governance across the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership. Almost none of that has been replaced. “Democracy programs were target number one,” a former USAID officer recalled.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Executive Order 14169 scrapped long-standing programs midstream, fired experienced local staff and shut down USAID’s public databases—erasing decades of institutional memory. One official put it bluntly: The administration “destroyed first and planned later.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

When the Trump admin dismantled USAID’s operations in 2025, the shock was immediate. Out of 258 Europe & Eurasia Bureau programs once active across the region, only 11 remained in Ukraine. In Bosnia and Herzegovina? Just one survived. In particular, democratic support evaporated nearly overnight.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

In 2023, the US disbursed $12.4 billion in ODA to the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership. One year later, much of that support has evaporated. Our new policy brief asks: Why does it matter for Europe — and how should Europe respond? A 🧵 on the main results: bst-europe.eu/europe-in-th...

bst-europe.eu

After USAID: Europe’s Moment to Lead

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

Most concerning: ‘American diplomacy should continue to stand up for genuine democracy… and unapologetic celebrations of European nations’ individual character… the growing influence of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism.

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Max Bergmann @maxbergmann.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The NSS signals 2 big shifts for Europe 1. Europe will handle its own security now. They take the 5% commitment literally. 2. US plans lots of political interference to back the far right. This is what "restoring Europe’s civilizational self-confidence and Western identity" means. Buckle up.

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Ulrike Franke @rikefranke.eu · 05/12/2025

What struck me most on Europe wasn’t the focus on value, freedom of speech etc - again, very similar to Vance’s Munich speech - but how activist it is. This is about directly trying to influence what is going on in Europe:

American diplomacy should continue to stand up for genuine democracy, freedom of expression, and unapologetic celebrations of European nations' individual character and history. America encourages its political allies in Europe to promote this revival of spirit, and the growing influence of patriotic European parties indeed gives cause for great optimism.
Our goal should be to help Europe correct its current trajectory. We will need a strong Europe to help us successfully compete, and to work in concert with us to prevent any adversary from dominating Europe.
America is, understandably, sentimentally attached to the European continent— and, of course, to Britain and Ireland. The character of these countries is also strategically important because we count upon creative, capable, confident, democratic allies to establish conditions of stability and security. We want to work with aligned countries that want to restore their former greatness.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

This document is the most formal expression yet of what the administration has signaled in speeches and interactions over the past ten months. With its release, those signals become policy. It drives the stake even deeper into the heart of the transatlantic relationship as we’ve known it.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

My take: Not surprising, the NSS mostly echoes broader WH rhetoric—more ideological worldview than concrete strategy. Europeans should treat as a window into administration’s thinking, no real long-term plan. Policy will remain volatile, reflecting the President’s frequently changing priorities.

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The section ends: “Our goal should be to help Europe correct its current trajectory… and to prevent any adversary from dominating Europe.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

Despite criticism, the NSS stresses Europe’s importance: “Not only can we not afford to write Europe off—doing so would be self-defeating for what this strategy aims to achieve.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The document claims European governments aren’t reflecting public sentiment: “A large European majority wants peace, yet that desire is not translated into policy… because of those governments’ subversion of democratic processes.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

On Ukraine, it states: "It is a core interest of the United States to negotiate an expeditious cessation of hostilities in Ukraine… and reestablish strategic stability with Russia.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

On Russia, the NSS calls for U.S. diplomacy to stabilize relations: “Managing European relations with Russia will require significant U.S. diplomatic engagement… to reestablish conditions of strategic stability across the Eurasian landmass.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

A major theme is cultural revival. The NSS says: “We want Europe to remain European, to regain its civilizational self-confidence, and to abandon its failed focus on regulatory suffocation.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

It describes Europe as being reshaped by “migration policies that are transforming the continent and creating strife” and alleges “censorship of free speech… cratering birthrates, and loss of national identities and self-confidence.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The NSS argues Europe faces deeper cultural and structural problems, citing “national and transnational regulations that undermine creativity and industriousness” and warning of “the real and more stark prospect of civilizational erasure.”

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

Mentions of Europe appear throughout the NSS, but the most detailed — and most provocative — are in a section titled “Promoting European Greatness.” For Europeans, this will be quite a read. Here’s an overview of the key points:

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Brandon Bohrn @brandonbohrn.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

The Trump administration’s new National Security Strategy was released overnight in the US. What are the administration’s apparent priorities pertaining to Europe? I’ve pulled out the key points from the 29-page document. PDF: www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/u...

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