Veridica Digest

The Kremlin’s crypto king
Ilan Șor - Riga Crypto în slujba lui Putin
The Kremlin’s crypto king

How a convicted fraudster lit the way for Russia’s sanction-busting operations

CNN: Why is one corner of China’s internet insisting a golden era never existed?
Istoria Chinei, rescrisă
CNN: Why is one corner of China’s internet insisting a golden era never existed?

Something weird has been happening on China’s internet. One small and vocal corner has been claiming the country’s most famous historical dynasty never existed.

The Economist: A top Russian oligarch breaks the silence
Cel mai important rus de care nu ați auzit
The Economist: A top Russian oligarch breaks the silence

An interview with Andrey Melnichenko on the future of his country

Nature: World-first: therapy to make cells young again trialled in a person
Premieră mondială: Întinerirea celulelor
Nature: World-first: therapy to make cells young again trialled in a person

A participant in a landmark clinical trial has been given a cellular-reprogramming treatment that aims to rejuvenate damaged cells in the eye.

CNN: Israel sent troops to Azerbaijan during Iran war as part of secret network across region, sources say
Războiul cu Iranul
CNN: Israel sent troops to Azerbaijan during Iran war as part of secret network across region, sources say

Israel secretly deployed elite military and intelligence units to Azerbaijan during the war with Iran as part of a network of covert sites across the Middle East to facilitate operations against Iran, four sources familiar with the matter said.

Foreign Affairs: This Is Not the World Russia Wants
Putin vrea ca doar el să încalce legile internaționale
Foreign Affairs: This Is Not the World Russia Wants

A Belligerent America Is Foiling Putin’s Strategy

The New York Times: How China’s Leader Lost Faith in His Generals
Xi se teme de propria armată
The New York Times: How China’s Leader Lost Faith in His Generals

Xi Jinping spent 13 years building a military to rival that of the United States. But the stronger the Chinese forces grew, the less he trusted the generals he had handpicked to run them.

The Washington Post: First came the shooting. Then, the conspiracy theories.
Focuri de armă și conspirații
The Washington Post: First came the shooting. Then, the conspiracy theories.

The shooting at the White House correspondents’ dinner has sparked conspiracy theories on the left and the right that it was staged to drum up support for Trump and his ballroom.

The New Yorker: He Helped Stop Iran from Getting the Bomb
Programul nuclear iranian
The New Yorker: He Helped Stop Iran from Getting the Bomb

A former C.I.A. officer, Kevin Chalker, says that he recruited scientists as part of the United States’ effort to disrupt Iran’s nuclear program. Chalker offered them a choice: defect or die.

Bloomberg: The Strait of Hormuz Oil Shock Is Now Heading West
Criza petrolului
Bloomberg: The Strait of Hormuz Oil Shock Is Now Heading West

If the strait stays closed, the world will have to dramatically reduce its oil and gas consumption — but not before prices spike to a level that forces us to fly, drive and spend much less.

The Washington Post: To tilt Hungarian election, Russians proposed staging assassination attempt
Prietenia FIDESZo – rusă
The Washington Post: To tilt Hungarian election, Russians proposed staging assassination attempt

To aid Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a friend of Russia, in his election, operatives proposed “the Gamechanger” — a staged assassination attempt to stir supporters.

Financial Times: Denmark was ready to blow up Greenland runways if US invaded
Revendicările SUA asupra Groenlandei
Financial Times: Denmark was ready to blow up Greenland runways if US invaded

Danish soldiers sent to Arctic island in January were also given blood supplies in case of combat

The Saratoga Foundation: Russian Orthodox Church Deepens its Role as Kremlin Agent in Africa
Biserica Ortodoxă Rusă - agent al Kremlinului în Africa
The Saratoga Foundation: Russian Orthodox Church Deepens its Role as Kremlin Agent in Africa

The Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate provides a cover for Russian intelligence and covert action operations and even helps Moscow to conduct such operations.

CBS News: Havana Syndrome investigation is
Sindromul Havana
CBS News: Havana Syndrome investigation is "a massive CIA cover-up"

Since at least 2016, U.S. diplomats, spies and military officers have suffered crippling brain injuries.

The Insider: Lost in translation: How Russia’s new elite hit squad was compromised by an idiotic lapse in tradecraft
James Bond made in Russia
The Insider: Lost in translation: How Russia’s new elite hit squad was compromised by an idiotic lapse in tradecraft

Center 795 [made up of] elite units from the GRU and FSB, was established as a top-secret and fully autonomous entity designed to carry out the most critical operations [...]. One of its officers has already been arrested in Colombia on charges of organizing the kidnapping of multiple regime opponents. He was caught because he handled an agent using Google Translate.

Russian Startup Hacks Pigeon Brains, Turns Them Into Living Drones
Porumbeii-dronă
Russian Startup Hacks Pigeon Brains, Turns Them Into Living Drones

Pigeons have historically served as messengers for humans, but a Russian startup claims to take this to a new level—effectively “hacking” pigeon brains to turn them into biological drones.

The Wall Street Journal: NATO Has Seen the Future and Is Unprepared
NATO nu ar face față la un război cu drone, ca în Ucraina
The Wall Street Journal: NATO Has Seen the Future and Is Unprepared

A simulation of drone warfare shows how far the alliance has to go to learn the lessons of Ukraine.

Dario Amodei: The Adolescence of Technology
Pericolele AI
Dario Amodei: The Adolescence of Technology

Confronting and Overcoming the Risks of Powerful AI

Foreign Affairs: The Personalist Global Order
Era narcisiștilor
Foreign Affairs: The Personalist Global Order

When Individual Whims Drive Great-Power Policy

The New York Times: Trump Takes America’s ‘Imperial Presidency’ to a New Level
„Regele” Trump
The New York Times: Trump Takes America’s ‘Imperial Presidency’ to a New Level

In his first year back in the White House, President Trump has greatly expanded executive power while embracing the trappings of royalty in ways not seen in the modern era.

The Guardian: Assad family live in Russian luxury as Bashar ‘brushes up on ophthalmology’
Dictator la pensie
The Guardian: Assad family live in Russian luxury as Bashar ‘brushes up on ophthalmology’

Family friend, sources in Russia and Syria, and leaked data help give rare insight into life of dictator’s reclusive household

Politico: Forget the far right. The kids want a 'United States of Europe.'
Noua generație de pro-europeni
Politico: Forget the far right. The kids want a 'United States of Europe.'

On social media, the upcoming generation is expressing more European solidarity than the continent has seen in decades.

recorder: Justiție capturată
Justiția din România, decizii controversate în favoarea marilor corupți
recorder: Justiție capturată

După câțiva ani în care Justiția a dispărut aproape complet de pe agenda publică, societatea românească s-a trezit în fața unei realități greu de digerat, în care dosarele de mare corupție sunt îngropate în mod sistematic.

The Wall Street Journal: Germany’s Secret Plan for War With Russia
Europenii se pregătesc pentru un atac rusesc
The Wall Street Journal: Germany’s Secret Plan for War With Russia

A classified blueprint shows why weapons or troop numbers alone may not decide the outcome of a broader conflict between Moscow and the West