Steve Parry

Wrong. Vance's visit to Budapest is not 'normal diplomacy,' but a blatant attempt to support a floundering autocrat. 'Normal diplomacy' does not involve state visits days before a bitterly contested election. Nor does it involve attending political rallies. This is the kind of thing that Putin did in Ukraine in 2004. It's called 'autocracy promotion' or 'democracy prevention.'

Background: Orbán is an entrenched but wildly unpopular oligarch and authoritarian. He is facing an election that he will decisively lose — unless he can manage some trick. This obvious false flag (which he will now blame on Ukraine) should not fool anyone. It should only remind us that other people in similar situations (I mean Trump) will have similar thoughts. See my essay from yesterday on "The Next Coup Attempt."

Imagine an American vice-president traveling to Budapest in 1956 to support a pro-Kremlin government. That’s how pathetic the current U.S. government is.

End Discrimination Against People on Benefits in the Rental Market - Sign the Petition! c.org/JK5rVXCgqL via @UKChange

Last week, Putin made almost a billion dollars more in oil sales thanks to Trump.

The "Narva People's Republic" now has a flag, a coat of arms, and a Telegram network. Ukraine saw this playbook in 2014 – now it's appearing in a NATO member state. The same "People's Republic" branding that preceded Russia's Donbas occupation is targeting Estonia's border region. euromaidanpress.com/2026/03/17/nar…

He took the greatest military force in world history, lost a war to a middle power in a week, begged the world to save him, and demanded that the media lie about this and everything else. I try, but at a simple human level I do not see how anyone can mistake this man’s almost supernatural weakness for strength. His weakness is something negative, gravitational, so deep that it can draw in a whole country. But only if we fail to see it. Only if we let it.

Walk in Sofia before I drive to Belgrade

🚨News of the horrendous crimes against humanity in Iran over the last 48 hours. 🚨 An estimated 7,000 killed by regime forces. Western outlets and human rights groups outside the country put it at 650 but news from inside have it closer to the number above. Many of them young girls and teenagers, I’ve seen the videos and they are too horrific to share. Yet STILL they are out on the streets in massive numbers. This situation is unprecedented. The most remarkable story of revolution I’ve ever seen. Berlin Wall 1989 comes close - and I was there - but this is different. Very different. The people on the streets are ordinary civilians, some of them sick, some even in wheel chairs. But the majority are young and they are fighting with all they have. And if they’re to have any kind of life ahead of them, they know there’s no way back from this. It’s a war of attrition never seen before with little to compare it to. In layman’s terms it’s do or die. With 5 days of internet shut down and black outs so the regime can kill at will, it’s time for us to speak up. The world needs to act. We are on the precipice of something seismic. #IranRevoIution2026

A fascinating programme here: exeter.ox.ac.uk/conversations-… Please come if you can.

The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction (i.e., the reality of experience) and the distinction between true and false (i.e., the standards of thought) no longer exist. – H Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, p. 474

🚨 Why is Moscow perplexed by Trump's swift Venezuela "special operation"—and how is it reshaping Putin's Ukraine calculations? As headlines buzz with Maduro's capture, US oil control, Greenland threats, and stalled Ukraine talks, my new R.Politik Bulletin No. 1 (175) reveals Russia's contradictory responses and strategic shifts you won't find in mainstream coverage. With 2026 off to a turbulent start—US seizures of Russian-linked tankers, NATO tensions over Greenland, and fears of Venezuelan oil flooding markets—this edition unpacks the pressures converging on Russian policymaking. Key insights you'll find inside: 📌Ukraine Peace Talks on the Brink: US, Ukraine, and Europe near a full framework with NATO-style security guarantees—leaving Moscow in a precarious spot: disrupt without alienating Trump. After an alleged drone hit on Putin's residence and a fresh Oreshnik strike on Lviv, Russia's hardening its stance: Will Putin retract earlier "Anchorage deal" concessions? 📌Venezuela Shockwaves in Moscow: Trump's Maduro capture sparks apprehension, awe, and discord. Ultra-patriots express indignation at the "embarrassing" contrast to Ukraine's prolonged war; some in leadership debate if it's a threat or opens a "new wonder world." Exclusive: Moscow's confused reaction and how it views this as a blow to the international order. 📌Greenland Factor Looms: As Trump doubles down on acquiring the territory "at any cost," testing NATO unity—Putin sees tactical opportunities in disrupting alliances short-term, prioritizing less confrontation with the US and more hostility toward Europe. 📌Domestic Developments: Putin's year-end meeting with big business signals pessimism amid inflation and stagnation. Plus, speculation swirls on Dmitry Kozak: Prime minister contender or sidelined figure? 📌Rising Xenophobia Wave: Anti-migrant backlash surges with Indian laborers' influx, exposing rifts between security hawks and economy chiefs facing labor shortages. 2026 Outlook: What Russians really expect this year, plus hard data on 2025's industrial slowdown locking in "economy mode." This bulletin cuts through the noise with exclusive analysis on Russia's opportunistic pivot—less confrontational toward the US, more hostile to Europe—amid a world order in flux. If you're tracking #VenezuelaCrisis, #UkraineWar, or Trump's assertive moves, this is your insider edge. Subscribe to R.Politik for the full issue, archives, and future deep dives—stay ahead in 2026's geopolitical storm. #Russia #Putin #Trump #Geopolitics #Greenland #maduro rpolitik.com/bulletin/1-202…

💥🇵🇸 A computer scientist who escaped war-torn Gaza thanks to a student foundation, promised to bring his family to Europe. Instead, he’s spent over a year battling harsh Slovak bureaucracy while his loved ones remain trapped. @investigace_cz @pafak vsquare.org/stuck-between-…

A banger: after years of denials, the US govt bought a Havana Syndrome device that could be linked to the mysterious illnesses that struck overseas intel officers. I've researched 3 incidents in Europe, all real. @christogrozev has, as ever, done sterling pioneer work on this.

Tax cheat finds party of choice shock.

Monday morning re-up of an episode that I hope will provoke some thought and discussion: about devising a suite of measures that really can assure Ukraine's security, and be applied and sustained, unlike some of the 'reassurance force' fantasies...

This is how absurd Russian disinformation has become. Kirill Dmitriev lectures the UK about potentially banning X, while posting from Russia via a VPN, because X is already banned there.

"Police were given immunity for random violence, including killings, of minorities & political opponents. Many were promoted. They had a licence from the top. For the first time in Europe, the police were the violent criminals." - Germany, 1933. (Sound familiar?)

I've been trying to articulate why the fawning, complimentary responses from AI chatbots feel so insidious to me. I've figured out how to explain it. Wrote a piece on how current model training and design choices threaten our critical thinking skills: maggieappleton.com/ai-enlightenme…

There is a "machine" here that extracts CO2 from the atmosphere, produces oxygen, builds itself, is cheap and additionally delights us with its splendor and beauty.💚🌱🌿☘️🌲🌳🍀💚 👇👇👇It is called tree👇👇👇