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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 12m

👌🍲 Our Goulash newsletter is back this Thursday! Get fresh scoops and hard-hitting investigations from Central Europe’s top non-profit outlets delivered straight to your inbox every two weeks.
📨 Subscribe: http://vsquare.org/n...

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 1h

💥🇵🇱 "Poland’s centrist government is pushing to restore the rule of law undermined by the previous populist administration — but the country’s divided politics mean the chances of success are slim."

Poland tries to restore rule of law in the face of a hostile president

Polish President Karol Nawrocki is vowing to scuttle any effort to change the legal system set up by the previous Law and Justice party government.

www.politico.eu

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 9h

💥 Estonian authorities have detained two suspects tied to the GRU parcel bomb plot that shook Europe last year, when explosive devices hidden in packages sent from Estonia detonated in countries including Germany, the UK, and Poland.

“An Old Acquaintance From Russia Contacted Me”: Parcel-Bomb Explosions Suspects Arrested - VSquare.org

Estonian authorities have detained two suspects linked to Russia’s GRU parcel bomb plot that shook Europe last year, when explosive devices hidden in packages sent from Estonia detonated in multiple countries.

vsquare.org

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 9h

🤔Here’s Viktor Orbán bowing to Ilham Aliyev in Egypt. Their close ties date back to 2012 when Orbán sent home Ramil Safarov, who murdered an Armenian officer with an axe, to Azerbaijan—where Safarov got a hero’s welcome. Meanwhile, $7 million was wired from an Azeri fund to a Hungarian bank.

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 9h

💥🇨🇿 "Talks on forming a Czech government have been thrown into chaos after a front-runner to get the foreign minister job was engulfed in a scandal over social media comments... Filip Turek had made racist, sexist and homophobic comments on Facebook."

Czech government talks stall over offensive remarks linked to likely next foreign minister

Former MEP’s party threatens to walk away from talks to form a new government.

www.politico.eu

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 10h

⚡️Across Central Europe, politicians used paid social media ads to attack journalists, activists, NGOs. From Hungary to Slovakia, these campaigns spread disinformation and hate, reaching tens of thousands while Meta and Google profit from #SponsoredHate.

Sponsored Hate: How Politicians Paid for Meta Ads to Attack Journalists - VSquare.org

Across the Visegrád countries, politicians have increasingly used paid social media ads to attack journalists, human rights activists, and civil society organizations.

vsquare.org

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 1d

💥Viktor Orbán in trouble: a new 21 Research Center (a reliable pollster) survey shows opposition leader Péter Magyar’s TISZA party leading Orbán’s Fidesz 53–35—an 18-point gap. Even the main govt-paid pollster (Nézőpont) admits to the @nytimes.com that smear campaigns against Magyar are failing.

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 21h

💥 Viktor Orbán faces a possible ousting in April 2026 — and whether he manages to cling to power or not, his regime and its global allure as a model for autocrats worldwide are crumbling. Read the sharpest analysis available.

The Era of Orbánism as an Exportable Model May Be Ending - VSquare.org

Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán’s once-admired “illiberal model” is faltering — plagued by economic crisis, voter frustration, and collapsing governance. With the 2026 election looming, his future — and the global appeal of his system — is at stake as his government faces its biggest political test.

vsquare.org

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 21h

Fidesz is mudding the water by having his proxies release fake polls with inflated numbers. That affects these aggregates.

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 21h

👌🍲 Goulash is back again this Thursday! Our bi-weekly newsletter brings fresh scoops and standout investigations from Central Europe’s top non-profit outlets straight to your inbox.
📨 Subscribe: http://vsquare.org/n...

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 21h

Trump on Viktor Orbán: “I endorsed him in the last election he had and he won by 28 points. So, you’re gonna do even better this time.”

Fact-check: Orbán won by 18 points in 2022 (national election) and by 15 points in 2024 (EP election). Now, his Fidesz party trails the opposition by 10–18 points.

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 1d

⚡️Before Russia’s war, Czech firms were among the biggest importers of Russian birch plywood. Though now banned under EU rules, loopholes let it slip back via Kazakhstan or Georgia. The EU warns such Russian wood still likely ends up in Czech homes.

The Battle for Birch: How Russian Timber Keeps Flowing into Europe - VSquare.org

Czech company Orlimex used to be one of the largest importers of Russian birch plywood in Europe. Today, Russian timber is under sanctions, yet loopholes in the EU’s complex legal framework still allow Russian birch to reach European markets

vsquare.org

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 22h

⚡️Investigation, visualized: we reveal full details of 2024’s arson attacks & parcel bombs across Europe. The sabotage was carried out by Russia’s GRU, masterminded by a smuggler of radioactive materials with perpetrators recruited via Telegram.

🔗Link: vsquare.org/crossing...

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 23h

🤔 Can anyone lip-read what Donald Trump is telling Viktor Orbán?

He was also invited by the U.S. president to the Gaza summit in Egypt. We’re still wondering what role, if any, Hungary might have played in the talks…

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 1d

💥🔎 In the 2010s, Hungary's intelligence began spying in Brussels against the EU and tried to recruit Hungarians working in EU institutions. But Orbán's spies did it so blatantly and clumsily that they were exposed.

@vsquare.bsky.social @direkt36.bsky.social @papertrailmedia.de @larsbove.bsky.social

Inside the Fall of Viktor Orbán’s Secret Brussels Spy Network - VSquare.org

In the 2010s, Hungarian intelligence began spying in Brussels against the EU and tried to recruit Hungarians working in EU institutions for this purpose. However, Hungarian intelligence carried it out...

vsquare.org

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 1d

💥Viktor Orbán in trouble: a new 21 Research Center (a reliable pollster) survey shows opposition leader Péter Magyar’s TISZA party leading Orbán’s Fidesz 53–35—an 18-point gap. Even the main govt-paid pollster (Nézőpont) admits to the @nytimes.com that smear campaigns against Magyar are failing.

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 1d

💥Orbán-ally EU Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi told Ursula von der Leyen he was “not aware” of spying operations against EU institutions at Hungary’s Brussels EU mission, which he led for 4 years, per @politico.eu.

Here's our investigation into Hungarian espionage in 🇬🇧: www.direkt36.hu/en/sulyos-ug...

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

Márta Pardavi @martapardavi.bsky.social · 1d

Across the V4, politicians have increasingly used paid social media ads to attack journalists, human rights activists, and civil society. Experts warn that algorithms favouring polarising content leave the door open for manipulation and harassment. @vsquare.bsky.social bsky.app/profile/vsqu...

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 1d

⚡️Across Central Europe, politicians used paid social media ads to attack journalists, activists, NGOs. From Hungary to Slovakia, these campaigns spread disinformation and hate, reaching tens of thousands while Meta and Google profit from #SponsoredHate.

Sponsored Hate: How Politicians Paid for Meta Ads to Attack Journalists - VSquare.org

Across the Visegrád countries, politicians have increasingly used paid social media ads to attack journalists, human rights activists, and civil society organizations.

vsquare.org

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

Márta Pardavi @martapardavi.bsky.social · 1d

Crazy money spent on political ads on Meta/Facebook in Hungary 🇭🇺. Fidesz, the government and aligned actors have bottomless pockets. New EU rules on political ads should have a huge impact.
From Lakmusz, the 🇭🇺 member of @edmo-eu.bsky.social lakmusz.hu/2025/10/06/a...

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 2d

☕💡Independent investigations into corruption and abuse of power don’t come easy—they require time, resources, and risk. If you’d like to help me keep going, you can support here:

Szabolcs Panyi is doing investigative journalism & holding power to account - Buymeacoffee

Szia! 👋I’m a Budapest-based investigative journalist dedicated to uncovering corruption, abuse of power, and Russian and Chinese espionage and influence operations in Central Europe. I also work

buymeacoffee.com

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Reposted by Szabolcs Panyi

VSquare.org @vsquare.bsky.social · 1d

⚡️Across Central Europe, politicians used paid social media ads to attack journalists, activists, NGOs. From Hungary to Slovakia, these campaigns spread disinformation and hate, reaching tens of thousands while Meta and Google profit from #SponsoredHate.

Sponsored Hate: How Politicians Paid for Meta Ads to Attack Journalists - VSquare.org

Across the Visegrád countries, politicians have increasingly used paid social media ads to attack journalists, human rights activists, and civil society organizations.

vsquare.org

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 2d

💥In Prague, Andrej Babis’s coalition talks hit turbulence as racist, Nazi-sympathizing, and misogynistic posts by Motorists party leader Filip Turek resurface. He almost became foreign minister.

Notably, Turek has been welcomed in the Patriots for Europe group as MEP since 2024 despite his remarks.

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 2d

💥🇺🇸 @financialtimes.com reveals Trump admin helped plan Kyiv's strikes on Russian oil.

Meanwhile, Viktor Orbán's pro-Kremlin govt sanctioned Ukraine's drone commander—for hitting the Druzhba pipeline that keeps Hungary running on Russian crude.

Will Hungary sanction U.S. military leaders next? 🤔

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Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 2d

☕💡Independent investigations into corruption and abuse of power don’t come easy—they require time, resources, and risk. If you’d like to help me keep going, you can support here:

Szabolcs Panyi is doing investigative journalism & holding power to account - Buymeacoffee

Szia! 👋I’m a Budapest-based investigative journalist dedicated to uncovering corruption, abuse of power, and Russian and Chinese espionage and influence operations in Central Europe. I also work

buymeacoffee.com

5 19

Szabolcs Panyi @szabolcspanyi.bsky.social · 3d

💥 Viktor Orbán faces a possible ousting in April 2026 — and whether he manages to cling to power or not, his regime and its global allure as a model for autocrats worldwide are crumbling. Read the sharpest analysis available.

The Era of Orbánism as an Exportable Model May Be Ending - VSquare.org

Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán’s once-admired “illiberal model” is faltering — plagued by economic crisis, voter frustration, and collapsing governance. With the 2026 election looming, his future — and the global appeal of his system — is at stake as his government faces its biggest political test.

vsquare.org

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