Central Europe Correspondent

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The role

We are looking for an enterprising and energetic central Europe correspondent, based in Warsaw, to cover Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Economic outperformance, highly polarised politics with strong illiberal nationalist forces and the race to rearm against the Russian threat make the region increasingly important to Europe’s future.

Poland is becoming a European powerhouse with one of the EU’s fastest growing economies and biggest armies together with the highest defence spending as a share of GDP. Warsaw has become a pivotal player on many EU issues, including the budget, enlargement, defence, support for Ukraine and relations with the US. Prague and Bratislava, both under illiberal eurosceptic relations, are potential EU disrupters.

A priority will be covering Poland’s parliamentary elections, which must take place by November 2027. Donald Tusk’s pro-EU coalition government is locked in a feud with the country’s nationalist president and has disappointed many Poles. But the opposition Law and Justice party under Tusk’s arch enemy Jarosław Kaczyński is in turmoil and sliding in the polls.

The correspondent will be expected to closely track the trajectories of billionaire Czech prime minister Andrej Babiš and Slovakia’s pro-Kremlin premier Robert Fico for any backsliding on democratic standards and the rule of law.

The region is well-tied into the German industrial machine and has some exciting high growth companies, particularly in the defence sector. But it is potentially vulnerable to Germany’s industrial woes. Slovakia is suffering from a car industry slow-down while Poland’s economy continues to power ahead. All face labour and skills shortages, wage inflation and a massive challenge to decarbonise their power and industrial sectors.

Key responsibilities

• Generate scoops and exclusive interviews while writing breaking news and original features and contributing to other sections of the FT

• Cooperate effectively with colleagues in Brussels, London and across the European network, especially the Ukraine and Russia teams

• Demonstrate expertise in reporting across all digital platforms

• Numerate and excellent proficiency in handling data

• Produce simple charts and identify opportunities to collaborate with Visual and Data journalism team

• Engage with our audience through social media and interactive content

We are looking for

• A flexible, energetic and enterprising self-starter

• Capable of building and maintaining contacts in multiple countries and comfortable writing for all parts of the paper, from the companies section to the Weekend Magazine

• The ability to grasp complex issues that cross political, economic and business disciplines and to collaborate effectively with editors and correspondents

• Knowledge of Polish or another Slavic language would be a big advantage but is not a prerequisite

Please submit your application by the end of the day, Sunday May 24 2026.

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What’s in it for you? Our benefits

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Please let us know if you require any reasonable adjustments/personalisation as part of the application process or to enable you to attend an interview. If you would like to discuss your requirements or have any questions, email talent@ft.com and a member of our team will be happy to help.

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