Always a step behind my husband, noiseless, invisible, but extremely important for the Orthodox Church in Poland. ‘Matuszki’ — wives of Orthodox clergy — are women institutions and servants of the Church.

Every Monday Visegrad Insight releases a weekly update on key developments in Central Europe from the point of view of democratic security.  Our team monitors for important political, civil society, economy and foreign policy updates and where possible hints at risks and developing scenarios. Currently, we monitor the situation in...

In just one month, Hungary’s capital hosts three flashy events reflective of the ideological wars that have haunted Central Europe for the past decade. Although often viewed as insignificant political PR pageants, with little press coverage by international media, these events are emblematic of the narratives that struggle for influence...

In 1991, I was a student of journalism at a school where there was no one to teach journalism to. This in part was because subjects such as ‘Criticism of the Bourgeois Press’ had been abolished. Only the authors of samizdat had any practical experience of a free press but...

On 23 August, the summit to launch the Crimea Platform — an initiative of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy aimed at strengthening the broad international coalition that does not recognise Russia’s annexation of Crimea — took place in Kyiv. As has often been the case in history, perseverance in the fait accompli...

The EU is going to bolster support for democracy in Russia while a conference in Budapest will bring notable conservatives from around the world together. The government in Poland may be quietly backtracking some of their controversial policies which violate the rule of law so as to release the EU...

In Polish politics, everything is upside down. First, you watch ‘Return of the Jedi’, and then ‘The Empire Strikes Back’. Will there be a ‘New Hope’ for the democratic opposition at the end?