When K-pop diplomacy hits Brussels

Summary

Brussels Playbook Podcast – “When K-pop Diplomacy Hits Brussels”

Host: Zoya Sheftalovich (Chief EU Correspondent, POLITICO)
Guest: Ian Wishart (Senior Politics Editor)
Date: June 10, 2026
Main Theme:
Exploring the political, economic, and cultural implications of the EU-South Korea summit in Brussels, Ursula von der Leyen’s increasing consolidation of EU power, and a light-hearted look at internal Brussels drama with the European Parliament’s football tournament.

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the fanfare (and soft power) of South Korea’s presidential visit to Brussels—yes, K-pop included—while unwrapping the summit’s real stakes: trade, defense, and relations with both China and North Korea. The conversation also peels back the curtain on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s strategic centralization of power, and closes with a spirited recap of the European Parliament’s annual football cup, where politics and sport collide in classic Brussels style.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. K-pop Diplomacy and the South Korea–EU Summit

• K-pop in Brussels: The hosts open with playful banter about K-pop and President von der Leyen’s apparent fondness for BTS and Blackpink, setting the stage for discussing “soft power” in diplomacy.
  • Memorable Quote: (Zoya) "Did you know Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is apparently a fan?" [01:33]
  • (Ian) "I bet she's not." [01:41]
• Significance of the Summit:
  • The summit marks renewed efforts among “middle powers” (like South Korea, Canada) to collaborate in an increasingly competitive global landscape.
  • First EU-South Korea summit in three years, aimed at deepening cooperation on defense, trade, and economic security.
  • South Korea is a critical defense manufacturer facing ongoing threats from the North and increasingly exporting arms to Europe (e.g., Poland).
• Trade Ties:
  • The longstanding free trade agreement (FTA) since 2011 underpins a robust €124 billion goods trade in 2025. South Korea is now the EU’s eighth-largest trading partner; the EU is South Korea’s third-largest. [02:58]
• Big Debut for President Lee Jae Myung:
  • His first major European tour, including Belgium, Italy, France, and the G7 in Evian, signals a pivot towards closer European ties while balancing U.S. reliance and Beijing engagement.
    • (Ian) "He's sort of made it very clear he wants really strong ties with Europe, hasn't he?" [03:19]
    • (Zoya) "Yeah, he has. And he's going to be in Europe, actually, for ages, for 10 days." [03:23]
• Geopolitical Tangle:
  • Recent visits between Chinese and North Korean leaders complicate the landscape.
  • North Korean weapons—and even troops—are reportedly supporting Russian operations in Ukraine, creating both risks and opportunities for EU-South Korea defense relations.
    • (Zoya) "North Korea is probably Russia's biggest and best partner from the perspective of actually sending troops on the ground." [04:06]
• SAFE Program Ambitions:
  • South Korea hopes for admission to the EU's €150 billion SAFE defense loan program, but the EU has been hesitant so far—though aspirations remain for a potential “SAFE 2” in the future.
    • (Zoya) "South Koreans are quite keen to be part of that if and when that actually eventuates." [04:38]
• Concrete Outcomes:
  • The summit will highlight a new digital trade agreement, an upgraded strategic partnership for economic security (covering AI, chips, defense), and enhanced information sharing. Big breakthroughs aren’t expected, but groundwork is laid for deeper alignment.
    • (Zoya) "They're signing a digital trade agreement which is building on that FTA from 2011..." [04:55]

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2. Brussels Power Play: Von der Leyen’s Quiet Consolidation

• Centralization in Action:
  • Discussion shifts to an upcoming European Security Strategy document. Traditionally, such work was under the EU’s External Action Service (EAS). For the first time, von der Leyen’s own cabinet (notably Simon Mordue and Arnaud Moliner) is running the process—part of her ongoing “centralization” drive. [06:03]
    • (Ian) "...She likes centralization as one, and the second one is she's not too keen on the External Action Service." [06:42]
  • The EAS is being nudged into a more technical, legal role, rather than shaping grand strategic vision.
    • (Zoya) "If you want things done right, then do them yourself. I think that's probably the line motto." [07:33]
• Implications for Brussels’ Power Dynamics:
  • Some see von der Leyen’s approach as pragmatic efficiency; others call it a “power grab” or “control freakery.”
    • (Ian) "People criticize her a lot for that very thing... the critical way of looking at it is it's control freakery. It's a power grab. But on the other hand, her allies would say no. She actually wants things done properly." [07:39]
  • The European People's Party (von der Leyen’s bloc) has long wished to pull EAS functions into the Commission. Wholesale change would require a treaty revision—but current “salami slicing” erodes EAS influence nonetheless. [08:01]
  • Loss of influence is compounded as top EAS talent moves to the Commission (e.g., Simon Mordue).
    • (Zoya) "...the EAS accuses von der Leyen of... taking some of its best people as well." [08:47]
• Further Centralization: The AI Envoy:
  • Von der Leyen’s appointment of Siemens chair Jim Hagemann Snabe as special AI envoy, reporting directly to her instead of the tech vice-president, set off complaints—raising questions for industry and member states about where the real decision-making now resides.
    • (Ian) "Say if you're in the technology sector, you don't know if you're going to the technology commissioner, because something that's actually quite important is being done under the von der Leyen office." [09:36]
  • For governments and businesses alike, the Commission’s concentration of power makes the “direction of travel” harder to read and influence.
    • (Zoya) "...EU countries also have an issue with the city centralization of power, so to speak. Firstly, because it means that a lot of power is concentrated in one pair of hands... they don't have as much influence." [09:57]

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3. Brussels Gossip: European Parliament Football Drama

• The “World Cup” of Brussels:
  • Zoya’s “favorite story in yonks” brings comic relief: the annual European Parliament seven-a-side football tournament—15-minute matches played by teams from Parliament political groups and administrative services.
• Tournament Structure and Key Teams:
  • Semifinals and finals scheduled for June 26 in Luxembourg.
  • Teams include:
    • Los Spacos (President Metsola’s cabinet)
    • The Socialists & Democrats (only political group left)
    • DG Pers (Personnel), DG INLO (Infrastructure & Logistics)
• On-Field Antics:
  • Notable match: European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) trounced the Greens 12–0. Afterward, some Greens players refused to shake hands, and ECR lodged a formal complaint.
    • (Zoya) "...after the match, some Greens players, they refuse to shake hands with their opponents. And the ECR complained to the organizers." [12:13]
    • (Ian) "You think of Greens as being just nice." [12:37]
  • The Renew (Liberals) team stands out for negative reasons: they’ve racked up the highest number of “non-fair-play” penalties (seven), prompting quips about their aggressive playstyle.
    • (Zoya) "Yes, seven of them, if you can believe it." [13:12]
    • (Ian) "Dirty, dirty Liberals." [13:14]
    • (Zoya) "Liberalism is on the offensive again. Our football team perhaps took this too literally." [13:16]

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4. Listener Interaction & Brussels Pet Peeves

• Fun with Pronunciations:
  • Zoya is corrected by a listener (Rory) on her mispronunciation of the Irish Taoiseach’s (Prime Minister’s) name.
  • Lighthearted segment asking listeners to share their own Brussels pet-peeves—mispronunciations, national stereotypes, and cultural missteps.
    • (Rory, listener audio) "The accent over the A in the name Michal rather than Michael causes the A or any other vowel in the Irish language to have like an elongated sound..." [13:53]
    • (Zoya) "Mayor Culpa, people. I just thought I might trigger some. Some people. That's what I thought." [13:37]
• Host Banter:
  • Ian shares he doesn’t like being stereotyped about tea as a Brit; Zoya admits to enjoying borscht and mild annoyance with being compared to Cypriot sausage.
    • (Zoya) "Just because I don't like that particular sausage, you can call me a salami." [14:57]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• (Zoya, about von der Leyen) “If you want things done right, then do them yourself. I think that's probably the von der Leyen motto.” [07:33]
• (Ian, on Brussels’ political football drama) “Dirty, dirty Liberals.” [13:14]
• (Zoya, teasing K-pop ignorance) “It is not a breakfast cereal. They are some of the biggest K pop groups out there.” [01:33]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• K-pop Diplomacy Intro and Summit Overview: 00:44 – 05:31
• Von der Leyen and EU Centralization: 05:46 – 10:39
• European Parliament Football Cup Antics: 10:50 – 13:25
• Listener Corrections and Brussels Pet Peeves: 13:25 – 15:00

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Episode Tone

Conversational, witty, and playful, but always anchored in sharp political analysis. The hosts blend political reporting with humor and relatable banter, making EU affairs both accessible and entertaining.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode:

You’ll learn why K-pop was part of Brussels’ diplomatic buzz, get insight into how Ursula von der Leyen is re-shaping EU power structures, and hear how even football can turn political in the EU’s heart. Plus, you’ll pick up a few Brussels in-jokes and language lessons to boot.

Transcript

[A]

So good, so good, so good. New markdowns up to 70% off are at Nordstrom Rack stores. Now Stock up and save big on shoes, tops, dresses, accessories and more must haves for summer. Join the nordiclub to unlock exclusive discounts. Shop new arrivals first and more. Plus, buy online and pick up at your favorite rack store for free. Great brands, great prices. That's why you rack. Good morning. It's Wednesday, June 10, and this is the Brussels Slaybook podcast. The vibe in Brussels today is K Pop diplomacy. That is not a vibe.

[B]

That is not a vibe.

[A]

Oh, Dionis, he does it again. The vibe in Brussels today is K Poppy. As K Poppy, South Korea's president arrives for a summit that starts with soft power and quickly gets to chips, trade, defense and China. Also on the pod, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is tightening her grip on yet another strategic file. This time it's defense. And the European Parliament's football cup delivers some peak Brussels drama. On the pitch and off. Can't wait. I'm Zoya Shatolovich and with me today is senior politics editor Ian Wishart. Hey, Ian.

[B]

Good morning, Zoya.

[A]

Who are you into? BTS or blackpink?

[B]

Is that like the Emission Trading Scheme?

[A]

No, it's K Pop groups.

[B]

No, me already like a breakfast cereal.

[A]

It is not a breakfast cereal. They are some of the biggest K pop groups out there. Did you know Commission president Ursula von der Leyen is apparently a fan? No.

[B]

I bet she's not.

[A]

Well, she pretends to be on the Internet as we all do. She posted a video ahead of today's EU South Korea summit here in Brussels in which she was apparently listening to K Pop while she was getting ready.

[B]

Yes. Well, should we talk about the serious aspect of this? It's the South Korea EU summit today. Do you want to tell us why? This is quite significant, Zoya?

[A]

It's a big one. Because this is all part of that big trend that we've been talking about on the POD and elsewhere about these middle powers combining their efforts to kind of get ahead when faced with competition.

[B]

Like minded country, I think.

[A]

Like minded countries. That's right. It's the Canadas and the South Koreas of the world getting together and becoming buddies again. So this is the first one of these summits that they've had in around about three years. And it's being billed as an opportunity for the EU and South Korea to get closer on things like defense. In particular, South Korea is a key defense manufacturer. Obviously they're in this long term war with North Korea, which is in kind of a cold phase, but they're still concerned about North Korea. They produce a lot of defense equipment and they've been selling a lot of it to Europe, actually. Poland, I think, is among the highest purchases.

[B]

There is a free trade agreement, isn't there, between the EU and South Korea? It's been one since 2011, I think.

[A]

Yeah, that's right. Something like 124 billion euro in goods passed between the two last year alone. And South Korea is the EU's eighth largest goods trading partner, and the EU is South Korea's third largest.

[B]

This is the first big European trip for the South Korean president, Lee Jae Myung.

[A]

That was really nice, Ian. Well done, you.

[B]

And he's sort of made it very clear he wants sort of really strong ties with Europe, hasn't he?

[A]

Yeah, he has. And he's going to be in Europe, actually, for ages, for 10 days. He's going to go to Belgium, obviously, then Italy, France, the G7 summit in Evian, he's going to be going there. But the thing is that South Korea obviously is very dependent still on the us and at the same time, they've been trying to improve their relations with Beijing.

[B]

And this is quite interesting, isn't it, because the Chinese leader was in North Korea not so long ago. And that's where things obviously get complicated for South Korea.

[A]

This is the classic thing, the messy world of geopolitics right now.

[B]

It's really tangled because obviously North Korea and South Korea, as you say, are at war. North Korean troops have been used by Russia in Ukraine and weapons, I mean,

[A]

they're very closely aligned. I would say North Korea is probably Russia's biggest and best partner from the perspective of actually sending troops on the ground.

[B]

So there's complications here, but there's also opportunities for Europe as well, in terms of defense and that kind of thing.

[A]

Yeah. The thing is that what the South Koreans really want is they want to be part of the EU's SAFE program. That's that 150 billion euros loans for weapons scheme.

[B]

That's a lot of countries want to be able to get a part of this, don't they?

[A]

Absolutely. The UK is clamoring to get in.

[B]

The EU refused South Korea, didn't they?

[A]

They. They did. The South Koreans are still hopeful because Ursula von der Lyon did say that there might be a SAFE two coming. And so I think the South Koreans are quite keen to be part of that if and when that actually eventuates.

[B]

So the summit happening today, I don't think they're expecting any huge breakthrough though, are they?

[A]

Probably not, but there are a few concrete things on the table. So they're signing a digital trade agreement which is building on that FTA from 2011. There's going to be a new strategic partnership on economic security, and that's going to cover things like AI chips and defense. And there's already a security and defense partnership, but they now want to push that into a higher level cooperation which involves more sensitive information sharing.

[B]

These are the boring bits of global politics, but actually they form the bedrock of relations around the world. These are the sort of relations that people like Trump actually and Putin and Xi have upended over the last few years.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. So it's going to be a big day for the South Korea EU partnership.

[B]

Sawyer, should we talk about some things closer to home?

[A]

Let's do it.

[B]

European Commission again. And. Well, you know more about this than I do, but there's a big report coming out, a big strategy document. It's about defense and normally it's been done by the External Action Service, the foreign Policy wing, but this time it's being drawn up by people actually working for the commission under von der Leyen, the commission president.

[A]

Yeah, that's right. This is the European Security Strategy. And when you hear about a strategy like that, you would expect it to be the diplomats doing it, or maybe even the Defense Commissioner, Andreas Kabilius, who might have a hand in it. But no, Ursula von der Leyen. And this is something we've seen over the course of her second term in office and her first term as well. She is really consolidating all of those super important strategies, papers, etc, in her own hands. And this is one of the ways in which she's doing that. So it's super interesting. The drafting process is being driven by a couple of senior officials who are closely aligned with von der Leyen. They're in her cabinet, particularly Simon Mordu and Arnaud Moliner.

[B]

Two of the observations people have about von der Leyen's commission is that she likes centralization as one, and the second one is she's not too keen on the External Action Service. This sums that up. It's come to me, let's do everything on my watch, under my jurisdiction, and. And let's leave something that's traditionally been the EAs to do other stuff.

[A]

Yeah, and the other stuff that they're going to be doing is like this more technical role, focused on treaty provisions and legal aspects, but not really shaping that strategic overall vision. I think you're Absolutely right. This is part of that whole rigmarole that's been happening over the past few years.

[B]

Does that matter, do you think? I mean, we get asked quite a lot, don't we? And you do it particularly when you go and speak on panels. You know, what is this commission about? What's its reputation? This is a really good example of that.

[A]

Yeah. I think you could probably sum it up with, if you want things done right, then do them yourself. I think that's probably the line motto.

[B]

People criticize her a lot for that very thing, you know, and the critical way of looking at it is it's control freakery. It's a power grab. But on the other hand, her allies would say no. She actually wants things done properly.

[A]

Yeah. And she is very effective. You can say what you want about Ursula von der Leyen, but, like, she certainly gets things done. She gets things across the line with a lot of these things we've discussed

[B]

before how particularly the European People's Party, Von der Leyen's party, the Centre Right Party, actually would quite like the EAs not really to exist or at least to come within the commission completely. I don't think they can really. Do you need treaty change to do that? I'm not sure, but you certainly would need a big decision. But this is kind of doing it by a thousand cuts, isn't it? By very subtly bringing the work the EAs would normally do under the commission.

[A]

Yeah. I think this is the sort of thing where it would be very difficult to get rid of the EAs. It's a large organism. It involves a significant amount of effort to get rid of it. But if you take away all of its power and if you take away all of its best staff, which is the other thing that the EAS accuses von der Leyen of doing, of taking

[B]

some of those best people as well.

[A]

Exactly. Some of the best people. And Simon Mordu being an example of someone who was at the EAs and now is squarely in the commission president's cabinet.

[B]

I think it says a lot about the power dynamic in Brussels, doesn't it?

[A]

Yeah, it does. And in any case, look, there have been several things like this lately. I mean, we haven't talked about it on the POD yet, but we will talk about it. Now. Let's talk about the appointment of the special AI envoy by von der Leyen. That was Siemens chair Jim Hagman Snab, and he's going to be reporting directly to von der Leyen rather than Vikunen, who is the tech executive Vice president. She's the big boss in the commission of tech. But instead von der Leyen chose the person to take this pretty key role, considering how important AI is going to be going forward. And there have already been super violent complaints about that.

[B]

I guess this does have particularly significant ramifications for lobbying and that kind of thing. And we know how important lobbying is in Brussels. Say if you're in the technology sector, you don't know if you're going to the technology commissioner, because something that's actually quite important is being done under the von der Leyen office. That has really big consequences if you're a business knowing what to do.

[A]

Yeah, definitely. And if you're a member country, if you're an ambassador and you're trying to figure out, like what's the direction of travel. And this is the thing like EU countries also have an issue with the city centralization of power, so to speak. Firstly, because it means that a lot of power is concentrated in one pair of hands. So it's more difficult for them from that perspective. They like to have a bit more of a divide and conquer approach sometimes. And also they feel like they don't have as much influence. They don't have enough say because things are directed very heavily from the top in this way.

[B]

Well, so I'm sure we will speak about this again, the power dynamics and the shifting areas of power within Brussels. But this is another good example of that for people who are particularly interested in the way that the institutions work.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. Ian, this is my absolute favorite story that we've done in yon.

[B]

That's saying something is we have talked about cheese quite a lot.

[A]

Well, not for a while.

[B]

No.

[A]

It's about a World cup of sorts.

[B]

A World cup, yes.

[A]

Not the World cup, which starts tomorrow. It's about the Brussels World cup, the European Parliament's annual football tournament. Yeah, yeah. I've been watching so closely every.

[B]

Every wall chart. It's in their album.

[A]

I've got all of the cards, the collector's cards. It's entering the decisive phase, Ian. The semi finals and finals are going to be played on June 26th in Luxembourg. And it's seven aside football. So seven players per team. You've got to have a minimum of two women per team. The matches last for a whopping 15 minutes.

[B]

And it sounds like there's already been some disciplinary problems.

[A]

There have been listening. Here's who's in it. We've got one team that's made up of Roberto Mazzola, that's the European Parliament. President, her cabinet and aides to the Parliament. Secretary General Alessandro Chichetti. They're called the Los Spacos.

[B]

Oh, nice.

[A]

Yeah, because they have offices in the Paul Henry Spark building. And then you've got the Socialists and Democrats. That's the only political group that's still in the running. As well as teams from dg. Purse, that's Personnel, not wallet, dg, inlo, Infrastructure and Logistics.

[B]

We're not going to go through all

[A]

the results we're going to give.

[B]

I've already lost interest in this. Can you get to the interesting bit about the disciplinary problem?

[A]

All right then. Well, the European Conservatives and Reformists team played the Greens recently. That was last week. ECR 12 to 0. And after the match some of the great right winger. This is the stuff we stay around for. Ian. Listen, after the match, some Greens players, they refuse to shake hands with their opponents. And the ECR complained to the organizers.

[B]

Think of them, would you? You think of Greens as being just nice.

[A]

Not if you meet some. Ian, should we get back on track?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

ECR complained to the organizers, DG. Com and the Green spokesperson, Simon McKinney told Max Greer, our colleague, it was a heated game and he didn't want to politicize what happened. And he said that shaking hands is a personal decision.

[B]

Well, it is. It has to be, doesn't it? But then I also read that there was problems with the renewed team, the Liberals. Yeah, they. They' been playing quite dirty, haven't they've got the most penalties for non fair play in the whole competition.

[A]

Yes, seven of them, if you can believe it.

[B]

Dirty, dirty Liberals.

[A]

Well, there are new spokesperson Nick Petrae. He told Max, Liberalism is on the offensive again. Our football team perhaps took this too literally.

[B]

Very good. Anyway, before we go, I hear you've been offending the Irish again on yesterday's episode, haven't you? Because A, you pronounced the Prime Minister's name wrong and B, you called him the Prime Minister.

[A]

Yeah, Mayor Culpa, people. I just thought I might trigger some. Some people. That's what I thought.

[B]

Okay, so it's Taoiseach. That's what you call the Irish Prime Minister.

[A]

Although I'm not saying Premier Minister.

[B]

Anyway, we've got some audio from one of our lovely listeners, Rory.

[A]

Hi, Zoya. I thought you'd like to know that the accent over the A in the name Michal rather than Michael causes the A or any other vowel in the Irish language to have like an elongated sound. So instead of the A sound in Ca, it's like the A Sound in father. So Michal rather than Michal. Anyways, big fan of the show. Thanks. Got it. Michal. That's almost Polish. If they had just told me pronounce.

[B]

Making that this worse. Why don't we ask people to WhatsApp us with the one thing that annoys them in Brussels about what people of a different nationality does or how they pronounce things?

[A]

What's yours, Ian? What do you hate?

[B]

I hate it when people think that because I'm British that you're really particular about your tea. I wasn't going to say that, but you saved me from what I was going to say.

[A]

Which was what?

[B]

Another time.

[A]

Mine is that I enjoy. No, you know, I was going to say that I enjoy borscht, but I do.

[B]

Do you?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Didn't even annoy you when people compared you to a Cypriot sausage, did it?

[A]

I was a bit annoyed.

[B]

Not surprised.

[A]

Just because I don't like that particular sausage, you can call me a salami.

[B]

Okay, good. Well, I think that's enough for today, Zoya.

[A]

It is. Can you please ask people to send us some voice notes? I'm sick of asking them for reviews, too.

[B]

Okay. Send us some voice notes, send us some reviews. And I don't know how to do it. But you can do some stars, can't you?

[A]

Yeah. Five, please.

[B]

Five stars.

[A]

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