Episode 35, presented by Raytheon: Ben Hodges — Munich Security Conference — Brexit blockbusters

This week's episode features a review of the Munich Security Conference and an interview with Ben Hodges, who recently retired as commanding general of the U.S. Army in Europe.

Also on the podcast: our panelists give their verdict on the big new job for Martin Selmayr, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker's powerful chief of staff, look forward to the Italian election and once again test their knowledge of members of the European Parliament.

The Munich Security Conference, the premier gathering of security and defense experts and policymakers, has been called "a poor man's Davos, but one where work actually gets done." POLITICO's Matthew Karnitschnig gives host Ryan Heath the lowdown on this year's event and introduces his interview from the conference with Hodges, who discusses transatlantic ties, Russia, the Balkans and how Europe can deter potential threats.

Highlights from the show:

Hodges on Russia: "In all the governments of Europe, people recognize that the environment really has changed, that this is not somebody sabre-rattling toward Russia or you know somebody hoping that the Cold War will come back, this is a real change in security environment."

Germany's miserable military: A report for the German parliament found the country's army ill-prepared for combat. Hodges says "Germany absolutely can and should do more" to contribute to NATO but he has some novel ideas about how Berlin's contribution could be measured. Hear more in the podcast.

Eye off the Balkans: "I think we did sort of take our eye off the Balkans ... we've plateaued there and probably need to put some more energy into the institutions in the Balkans, otherwise they do become vulnerable to ... Chinese influence or Russian influence."

EU WTF — Martin Selmayr: The panel reacts to Martin Selmayr's new job, and what it will mean for how the Commission is run. They also discuss the Italian election and respond to a reporter's challenge to name the movie that best fits the Brexit storyline.

MEP of the week: Our panelists delve once again into a big box filled with the names of members of the European Parliament to see if they can find someone they know. We also hear more about the people behind the names picked out in previous weeks. And we talk to last week's MEP of the week, Eva Kaili of Greece, from the Socialists & Democrats group. She talks about her growing interest in technology and artificial intelligence — and her proposal to revamp one of the Parliament's committees.

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