Buhari cancels Christmas homage to Aso Rock, Gov. Sanwo-Olu recovers from virus and more

Talking Europe hosts Pascal Lamy, co-ordinator of the Jacques Delors institutes, and a distinguished former head of the World Trade Organization and former EU Trade Commissioner. We discuss great power competition in today's world; the EU’s influence when it comes to global trade and regulation; the critical importance of Africa to Europe; and climate adaptation in the light of Lamy’s role as a member of the Climate Overshoot Commission.

Since 1999, turnout in elections to the European Parliament has reached 50 percent only once. But with so many critical transnational issues facing the people of Europe – energy, inflation, the green transition and the post-Covid economic recovery – could the 2024 election campaign energise voters and reverse the low turnout trend? Ahead of next June's polls, we put that question to two of the top experts on public opinion in France.

Gambling in Japan operates in the shadows, yet it accounts for nearly half of sales in the country's leisure sector. And for some, a harmless pastime can turn into a dangerous addiction. About three million Japanese are thought to have experienced a gambling addiction at some point in their lives. Earlier this year, the government approved plans to build Japan's first casino, a long-awaited move that has divided public opinion. Our correspondents report on Japan's troubled relationship with gambling.

Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Tuesday.

Threats, tricks and promises — Russia's Defense Ministry has many carrots and sticks when it comes to getting Central Asian migrants to join the military. One of those ways is giving them a path to Russian citizenship.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his center-left coalition have been plummeting in opinion polls. But a study by the Bertelsmann Foundation finds the government has fulfilled many of its election promises.

Most Europeans have heard of "flight shaming," and now the EU hopes green jet fuel will be the answer to aviation emissions. The bloc has set ambitious production targets, but not everyone is sold.

Ursula von der Leyen used the biggest speech in the EU calendar to go to bat for green industry, sounding like a European Commission president with an eye on a second term. Some listeners missed new climate ambitions.

Find these stories and much more when you grab a copy of The Guardian on Saturday.

The European auto industry has raised concern about a wave of cheap, new electric vehicles from China hitting the EU market soon. There are calls for imposing punitive tariffs.

Enlargement of the European Union was one of the priorities outlined by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in her State of the Union speech on September 13th, and it is likely to become an ever more pressing issue over the next few years. After the speech, Talking Europe sat down with the EU Commissioner in charge of neighbourhood and enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi. He is a distinguished Hungarian diplomat and lawyer. He served as Hungary's ambassador to the EU, and has held prominent positions at the Hungarian ministry of justice and ministry of foreign affairs.

It is time for Europe's September ritual – the State of the Union speech. It has been a highlight of the EU agenda for the last 13 years. Every year, the president of the European Commission sets out his or her priorities to the plenary session of the EU parliament. Talking Europe hosts two MEPs, both vice-presidents of their groups, to share their impressions of Ursula von der Leyen’s address in Strasbourg on September 13th.