Category: Investigations

Under conditions of international isolation — intensified after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine — Russia has been actively seeking alternative ways to influence European politics in order to promote its interests. Having failed in its attempts to “befriend” the EU at the official level, Moscow has increasingly...

In the common perception, war means weapons, soldiers, and the struggle for territories, resources, and dominance. But there is another kind of war — one without explosions or gunfire — the information war. It is invisible, and its weapon targets not the body but the human mind. In the 21st...

The Baltic Sea. The Baltics. Despite its relatively modest size, the region has long been a battleground of empires. Throughout history, it has seen the rule of Teutonic knights, Polish-Lithuanian nobles, Swedish kings, the Russian Empire, and later the Soviet Union.For Russia, the region has always held strategic significance —...

With each passing year of Viktor Orbán’s premiership, Hungary is drifting further from the core values of the European Union and edging closer to a role no longer of partnership, but of internal opposition. What was once a cooperative EU member state is now a self-declared dissident, cloaking its actions...

Kremlin’s Influence on Moldova: New Masks of Old Faces Russian influence over Moldova is nothing new, but today we’re witnessing a new phase of this process—where the stakes are no longer just the country’s strategic direction, but its very ability to resist hybrid influence from within. A look at Moldova’s...

In our world, where people struggle daily for a better place under the sun—earning a living and climbing the social ladder—leisure time has become a luxury. And if one manages to save up for pleasure, they prefer to enjoy it quietly, far from the hustle and bustle. There’s a vast...

Corruption in Defense Equipment Procurement in the Czech Republic and Slovenia We dare to claim that nothing stimulates the development of the military-industrial complex and the arms trade (both sales and purchases) quite like the threat of an impending war. A vivid example of this can be observed today, as...

In today’s geopolitical chessboard, the Kremlin is investing less in tanks—and more in televisions, churches, and contraband. Moldova, a fragile democracy teetering between reform and destabilization, has become a testing ground for a new model of Russian influence. In this model, formal state institutions are gradually eroded, while an alternative...

When we think of the mafia, we often picture violent gangs engaged in drug smuggling, arms trafficking, illicit alcohol and tobacco trades, contract killings, prostitution rings, robberies, illegal gambling, car theft, and extortion. Yet this is only a fraction of the "specializations" pursued by mafia groups around the globe—each with...

It is no secret that numerous countries worldwide offer citizenship or at least a pathway to citizenship in exchange for financial contributions positioned as investments in the economic development of the respective state. Despite the substantial sums involved—often reaching millions—there is no shortage of individuals seeking to obtain the coveted...