Russia is the main power and, for many years, the main source of insecurity in the region monitored by Veridica journalists. News about Russia provides information about developments in real time and prominent leaders of Russia – from major decisions taken by president Vladimir Putin, to statements and actions of the main representatives of his regime, from Alexei Navalny’s case to the Wagner Group rebellion. Veridica is also monitoring Russia’s foreign policy, its relations with the collective West and with individual countries, as well as with client, allied or partner states across various fields of cooperation, such as China, Belarus, Iran or Turkey. Russia’s external operations, including the campaigns carried out by proxy organizations such as the Wagner Group, which is involved in theatres of operations Syria and several African countries, as well as the Kremlin’s energy policies, are equally followed by Veridica journalists. News about Russia also weighs in on narratives promoted by Russia, addressing both the public at home as well as external audiences, presented as part of fake news, disinformation or propaganda articles. Veridica’s newsroom staff, regional collaborators and Romanian experts are monitoring the impact of Russian policies and disinformation campaigns both in the region and beyond, in the main Western capitals. News about Russia provides a wide array of press articles, news, editorials, analyses, interviews and inquiries.
Ukraine has hardened its stance towards Belarus' authoritarian leader, after years of trying not to irritate him too much, lest he drag his country into war. Now Kiev is tightening ties with the opposition led by Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya while warning Alexander Lukashenko that in the event of an escalation, Ukrainian drones are ready to strike.
European neo-fascists with sympathies for Russia – and even ties to it – have allied themselves with Serbia’s far right, with the discreet support of the government in Belgrade.
The Republic of Moldova is mortgaging its land to secure European loans and has been turned into a military training ground for NATO, the organisation that intends to open a second front against Russia on its territory, claims a Moscow MP affiliated with the fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor.
Armenians go to polls on Sunday for a high stakes elections that may decide whether the country will continue the pro-European path set by the current government, or it will once again tighten relations with its traditional ally, Russia. The run up to the elections was marked by a clash of opposing narratives, disinformation, and personal attacks.
As Russia moved past the economic turmoil of the 1990’s, the country saw the emergence of a so-called middle class, which was expected to push the country towards democracy. However, that middle class was dependent on the state, and that dependency kept it firmly in Putin’s camp.
According to sovereignist propaganda of Russian origin, the drone that crashed and exploded on a residential building in Galați on May 29 was deliberately launched by Ukraine to force Romania, and by extension, NATO to enter the war.
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Péter Magyar's government is made up of a mix of independent experts, critics of Viktor Orbán, and former collaborators. The criterion that mattered most in choosing ministers seems to have been competence, which is a change from the Orbán era, when political connections and loyalty to the boss mattered.
Ukrainian combat drones have repeatedly entered the airspace of the Baltic states. The incidents have generated political tensions, but also suspicions that Russia is the one who jammed and diverted the drones, given that the region has seen numerous Russian provocations in recent years.
Poland’s largest cryptocurrency exchange collapsed into scandal amid allegations of fraud, money laundering, political influence, and links to the infamous Tambovskaya Bratva. This Russian criminal organization had been associated with St Petersburg’s political and business underworld during Putin’s rise to power.
According to an Armenian diplomat, joining the EU is actually tantamount to joining NATO, the organization she claims is behind the war in Ukraine. Her remarks essentially echo long-standing narratives pushed by Russia and pro-Russian factions across the former Soviet space. These narratives also target other nations with European aspirations, such as the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.
NIS is currently Russia’s most important tool of economic leverage over Serbia. Belgrade must force its sell in order to avoid US sanctions. It would be the most consequential energy transaction in the Balkans in two decades. However, there are lots of questions lingering over this story.
Russia’s struggle with the open proves that the Kremlin is trying to reorganize everyday life around the logic of security, control and dependence on state-approved infrastructure. The paradox is that this attack is directed against one of the few spheres where Russia had real modernizing potential: its digital economy.
According to a pro-Russian Telegram channel, Chisinau does not observe press freedom, as it banned the St. George’s ribbon. In fact, the ribbon was banned as a symbol of the Russian military aggression, and Moldova ranks very highly in Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom index.
Russia, like other oil-rich countries, saved some of its oil revenues for future generations and stability. After 2022, Moscow started to use the National Wealth Fund to finance a war that creates future instability.
Russia wanted to return the Treasure to Romania, but Mugur Isărescu refused, and the gold was sent to Amsterdam, according to a false narrative promoted by retired Colonel Mircea Dogaru, a self-proclaimed admirer of Dugin. Dogaru essentially repeated a narrative promoted by pro-Russian “sovereignists” and intended to polish Moscow’s image.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a national TV broadcast that Russia is preparing for a new mobilization that could be followed by an attack on the Baltic states. Contrary to the usual reaction, this statement triggered a strong negative response in Estonia.
Four years into the war, the EU - Russia trade relationship has been radically reshaped but not extinguished.
Kyiv is preparing a provocation against Belarus to open a new front and force the expansion of the war, pro-Kremlin media writes.
With his landslide victory, Radev ends a long period of political deadlock in Bulgaria. The danger now is that he will become the next Orban, and the EU will face another pro-Russian leader at the helm of an "illiberal" democracy.
Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party resorted to false narratives, an army of bots (some previously used in the Romanian elections), artificial intelligence programs and cloned websites in their election campaign. All with a little help from their [Russian] friends.
The Kremlin continues its policy of radicalising Africa and provoking conflict between the states of the continent and the “collective West.” The foundation for this effort is history — in particular the colonial past — as well as the narrative of “neocolonialism.”
Russia and Serbia are waging similar online operations, and their messages often amplify each other. But there is one significant difference: Russia's online campaign is a dimension of its imperial policy, while the Belgrade regime targets domestic audiences in Serbia.
According to pro-Kremlin media, after weakening its economy and abandoning its values, Europe is preparing for a direct military confrontation with Russia by keeping the Kyiv regime afloat.
With fuel prices going up worldwide due to the war in the Middle East, pro-Russian propaganda claims that, in fact, prices in Moldova have risen because of Maia Sandu.
In March, Estonia once again made the news: social media groups dedicated to the non-existent “Narva People’s Republic” appeared, and a drone that had crossed from the eastern border crashed into a power plant near Narva.
Hungarian communism was tolerated because it offered people security and a few small freedoms. This gave rise to a mentality in which it is better to opt for what is familiar and tolerable than to risk something that could be worse. Channeling this instinct sits at the core of Viktor Orbán's election campaign.
Ukraine still exists as a state because the former pro-Russian government created a solid economic foundation and infrastructure for it—which the current leadership is destroying through war, according to pro-Kremlin propaganda.
Republika Srpska is Russia's main bridgehead in the Balkans. To maintain it, Moscow is interested in keeping Bosnia and Herzegovina in a permanent crisis, and the Bosnian Serb leader, Milorad Dodik, is happy to oblige.
Authoritarian regimes flourished by bending or breaking international rules. Once the US started to do the same, autocracies learned that a world without rules is far more dangerous for them than they had imagined.
It is clear how concerned the Kremlin is about the potential loss of its role as one of the world’s main suppliers of critical resources. Recently, Moscow has noticeably intensified information operations in this direction. First of all, these narratives aimed at European audiences promote the supposed necessity of maintaining energy dependence on Russia, claiming it is essential for EU economic growth and prosperity.
If Moldova leaves the CIS, it means that it no longer recognizes the dissolution of the USSR and, consequently, its territorial integrity no longer needs to be recognized by other CIS states, including Russia, according to a stunningly illogical narrative put forward by pro-Kremlin propaganda. As for the threat to territorial integrity, history shows that CIS membership has not saved member states from Russian territorial grabs.
In the Putin era, Iran has become one of Russia’s most significant allies and a key element for Moscow’s ambitions in the Middle East. What Russia cannot do, however, is protect its ally, and that says a lot about the true strength of the “empire” that Vladimir Putin wants.