BIRN newsletter VI-2025

Elsewhere, Hungarian PM uses CPAC to rally radical-right against the EU; Czech Foreign Ministry directly accuses China of hacking; and German chancellor warns Slovakia and Hungary of EU penalties over their Russian stance.

With Poland ground zero of Russia’s hybrid war against the West, the government has been closely monitoring for signs of interference ahead of Sunday’s presidential runoff. Numerous threats were identified, but the ‘Romanian scenario’ seems to have been avoided.

Fearing he could lose the 2026 general election, the Hungarian PM is deploying ever harsher means to stay in power. A proposed bill foresees open censorship disguised as a ‘fight against foreign agents’. And there is still time to raise the stakes further.

Community ‘mediators’ are helping to get Moldova’s Roma children into school, but enduring stereotypes mean the chances of Roma adults finding meaningful work remain low.

Slovak civil society organisations have spent decades filling gaps left by the state. Now the state is coming for them.