European political leaders tried to switch off for a few weeks in August, but they must have had a lot on their minds. Russian forces have advanced in the Donbas, in eastern Ukraine. A summit in Alaska between the Russian and American presidents set off alarm bells in Kyiv and in the EU. And members of European governments are smarting from a trade deal with US President Donald Trump that leaves a 15 percent tariff ceiling on most EU products coming into the US – this as the European Union wants to assert its competitiveness and its strategic weight in the world. We discuss all this and more with our guests.