The election of Donald Trump for a second term marks a turning point for the international order and places Europe at a strategic crossroads. In his first months in office, Trump has doubled down on his “America First” policy, putting the US on a trajectory of unilateralism, transactionalism, and hostility toward its long-time partners in Europe. Trump 2.0 hits Europe at a time when it is confronted with Russian aggression and a continued power shift away from the West towards the Global South.

Faced with this new reality – some say wake-up call - Europe is scrambling to re-define its role across domains from international security and arms control to global trade, technology, finance, and development aid. In doing so, Europe must navigate both internal tensions and steep trade-offs between its past priorities and present imperatives.

To reflect on these multifaceted challenges, we will host an informal panel discussion to discuss Trump 2.0 and how Europe can best respond, touching on issues of Europe’s geopolitical turn, European rearmament, economic growth, and European leadership of the international multilateral order.