Security has moved from the margins of European politics to the centre of public debate. But communicating threats clearly without creating fear, oversimplifying uncertainty or losing audiences in technical language is a challenge of its own. Drawing on his experience in the Baltic states, Julius von Freytag-Loringhoven examines how political leaders and institutions can talk about security when the stakes are high — and what it takes to make complex risks understandable without stripping away their complexity.