Europe finds itself at a time of great geopolitical challenge, and Central Europe is in the eye of the storm. Poland, Hungary and Slovakia border Ukraine, but are at odds in what the right response to Putin’s war of aggression is, while Hungary in particular is also increasingly at odds with EU policy towards the USA and Israel. Attitudes towards Russia and also the US are the source of political division in several Central European countries, while actors on the illiberal right are acting increasingly boldly, feeling empowered by the Trump administration. Recent Polish presidential elections and a parliamentary election on the horizon in Czechia in September have the potential to change the political landscape further. In different ways, the relationship of these countries with the UK is also significant, with Poland in particular a vital partner in European defence and security.

Our expert panel will be discussing the role of Central Europe in this complex moment, including attitudes on Putin’s war of aggression, and the impact of the Trump administration on recent and upcoming elections in the region. The panel will also offer its views on how these developments might impact relations with the UK. There will also be an audience Q&A.

Speakers

Monika Brusenbauch Meislová (Masaryk University, Brno)
Aleks Szczerbiak (University of Sussex)
Vladimir Bilčík(GLOBSEC)
Alexander Faludy (Journalist)
Rt Hon Anneliese Dodds MP (chair)

The event will take place in Parliament in Committee Room 10 on Tuesday, 24 June 2025, at 18:00. Registration is required to be able to attend the event.

This event, organised by Aston University, the Foreign Policy Centre, and the UK in a Changing Europe.

Speaker biographies

Monika Brusenbauch Meislová is Associate Professor at the Department of International Relations and European Studies and the International Institute of Political Science at Masaryk University (Czech Republic) and Visiting Professor at Aston University (United Kingdom). She holds the prestigious Jean Monnet Chair in EU Digital Diplomacy awarded by the European Commission and is an associate member of the Centre for Research on the English-Speaking World at Sorbonne-Nouvelle University in Paris. She serves as editor of the Journal of International Relations and Development (Palgrave Macmillan, Springer) and of the Contemporary European Studies book series (Routledge), in addition to being member of editorial boards of several academic journals., including the Journal of Contemporary European Studies (Routledge, Taylor & Francis) and British Politics (Palgrave Macmillan). She is also a member of the Scientific Council of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs and participates in a number of international research projects. Her most recent work on UK-EU relations has been published in various top-ranking journals such as the Journal of European Public Policy, International Affairs, Journal of Common Market Studies, or the British Journal of Politics and International Relations.

Aleks Szczerbiak is Professor of Politics at the University of Sussex. He is the author of 'Poles Together? The Emergence and Development of Political Parties in Post-communist Poland' (Central European University Press, 2001), 'Poland Within the European Union: New Awkward Partner or New Heart of Europe?' (Routledge, 2012), 'Politicising the Communist Past: The Politics of Truth Revelation in Post-Communist Poland' (Routledge, 2018) and 'Political Parties and Religion in Post-1989 Poland (Routledge, forthcoming). He blogs regularly about the contemporary Polish political scene at: https://polishpoliticsblog.wordpress.com/

Vladimír Bilčík is a Senior Fellow of GLOBSEC, a leading think tank form Central Europe where he works especially on EU enlargement and neighbourhood issues. He is also a Visiting Professorial Fellow at Aston University and the Aston Centre for Europe. From 2019 to 2024 he served as a Member of the European Parliament where he had a high profile on issues around disinformation and the rule of law as well as on EU accession agenda in Western Balkans. Prior to 2019 he was heading the European politics research programme at the Slovak Foreign Policy Association (SFPA) and lectured in Politics Department at Comenius University in Bratislava.

Alex Faludy is a freelance journalist writing on politics and religious affairs in Hungary for diverse outlets including Balkan Insight, The Guardian and The Tablet.

Anneliese Dodds is the MP for Oxford East and has been an MP continually since June 2017. She was Minister for International Development between 2024 - 2025 and served as Shadow Secretary for Women and Equalities from 2021- 2024. Before entering the UK Parliament she served as a Member of the European Parliament.

Central Europe at a time of European and transatlantic challenges