Pietro Bellini

Managing Editor a Will Media

[BBC Sport @BBCSport]

WHAT HAVE WE JUST WITNESSED? 🤯

Sabastian Sawe has just become the first person in history to run a sub two-hour marathon in race conditions.

Yomif Kejelcha was also under two hours for second!

[Ben Rhodes @brhodes]

In the best case scenario, Trump struck a deal to reopen a Strait that was open before the pointless war he started, with the IRGC demonstrating its control over the Strait and potentially extracting fees plus sanctions relief. Thousands of innocents - including hundreds of children - dead in Lebanon and Iran for no reason. U.S. troops killed and wounded. U.S. embassies and bases in the Middle East badly damaged. U.S. standing in the world obliterated. U.S. munitions badly depleted. Hundreds of billions spent. Prices up everywhere. More global economic fallout to come. Putin strengthened and enriched. Just a catastrophic situation even in the best of circumstances. A profoundly shameful episode in American history no matter what happens next.

[stefano menichini @smenichini]

Coraggiosa questa idea che il rinnovamento di @forza_italia passi dal nome di #Craxi

[carlo canepa @carlo_canepa]

Oggi faccio il mio esordio su @Chora_Media con l’analisi dei risultati del referendum, insieme a Marco Damilano e @LorenzoCast89.

https://t.co/wzjjEqKU2E

[Denys Shtilierman @DenShtilierman]

The Washington Post published an article that, under normal circumstances, would have caused a political earthquake in Europe. But we live in a time when even such things no longer surprise anyone.

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) seriously considered a scenario involving a staged assassination attempt on Viktor Orbán. Not metaphorically. Not an “information campaign.” But literally — to stage an attack to boost his approval ratings ahead of the election. An SVR document, obtained and verified by European intelligence, explicitly describes a strategy titled “the Gamechanger” — “the staging of an assassination attempt on Viktor Orban,” which would “shift the perception of the campaign out of the rational realm of socioeconomic questions into an emotional one.” The inspiration is obvious: the assassination attempt on Trump in 2024 sharply boosted his ratings.

But that’s not the most interesting part.

According to European security services, Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjártó regularly called Lavrov right during breaks in EU meetings and provided “live reports” on the negotiations, the parties’ positions, and possible decisions. In other words, Russia wasn’t “trying to gain access to information.” It already had it. Right at the table. “Every single E.U. meeting for years has basically had Moscow behind the table,” the publication quotes a representative of a European security service. Meanwhile, Szijjártó made 16 official visits to Moscow after the start of the full-scale invasion.

But it is important to understand: this is not a Hungarian peculiarity and not a coincidence. It is the Kremlin’s systematic work over decades—within the EU and NATO.

During the war in Georgia, Sarkozy was in constant contact with Medvedev and coordinated positions. The result was an agreement that effectively preserved the Russian occupation. After his chancellorship, Schröder joined Gazprom and Rosneft — this was a telling slap in the face and confirmation of Russia’s institutionalized influence on European energy policy. Berlusconi promoted Putin’s interests within the EU for years and also acted as an informant.

Fico deserves a separate mention. The Prime Minister of Slovakia, who “miraculously” survived an assassination attempt in 2024, became an even more outspoken conduit for Kremlin narratives after his recovery. He blocks aid to Ukraine, travels to Moscow to pay homage, parrots Putin’s talking points word for word—and yet remains the prime minister of an EU and NATO member state. An interesting coincidence: after the assassination attempt, his approval ratings also rose.

The question of “whether there are Kremlin agents in the EU and NATO” is no longer relevant. They exist. The question is: at what level and how many of them are there? Because when a minister from an EU member state calls Lavrov after every meeting—that’s no longer infiltration. That’s integration.

And the worst part of this story isn’t even Orbán or Szijjártó. It’s that the system tolerates it. For years, the EU has been “expressing concern” while Russia literally sits at their negotiating table. And until this logic changes—the Kremlin won’t need to “break through the defenses.” It’s already open from the inside.

[Mike Bird @Birdyword]

Political speechmaking has generally degraded to the point that there's no reason to read them, rather than simply how they're reported, but Carney's Davos speech is a rare exception.

"The old order is not coming back. We should not mourn it. Nostalgia is not a strategy."

[Pietro Bellini @Pietro_Bell]

Trump at the golf course: Photos of the ADT Championship https://t.co/00xTMmH9Zl via @pbpost

[Nancy Pelosi @SpeakerPelosi]

For reasons known only to him, Donald Trump is now refusing to appoint a special prosecutor in the Epstein case after weeks of refusing to release the Epstein files.

This week, House Democrats voted unanimously to release the files. Republicans voted to keep them hidden.

With deep respect for the victims, their trauma and their privacy, everyone on the Epstein list must be held accountable no matter who they are. Release the files.

[Crazy Ass Moments in Italian Politics @CrazyItalianPol]

Oscar-winning director Roberto Benigni will be a guest at the Sanremo Festival tonight.

In 2002 the editor of the newspaper Il Foglio, Giuliano Ferrara, threw eggs at the television in protest at his presence.

[Chora Media @Chora_Media]

#FreeCecilia

[Ultimora.net @ultimoranet]

🔴 FLASH— LA GIORNALISTA CECILIA SALA ARRESTATA A TEHERAN, IRAN +++ @ultimoranet

[Rivista Undici @RivistaUndici]

Bragagna ti voglio bene

Nel 2026 il telecronista della Rai dell'atletica andrà in pensione, il che significa che quelle di Parigi 2024 sono le sue ultime Olimpiadi estive.

https://t.co/7g4srVKzM8

[Jack Yeo @jackryeo]

A picture of contrasting attitudes to the monarchy. #Paris2024 #OpeningCeremony

[Pietro Bellini @Pietro_Bell]

Il momento in cui si è capito che avrebbe vinto la Spagna #SpagnaInghilterra #EURO2024

[ian bremmer @ianbremmer]

france tonight:
far left/far right split screen

[Stanley Pignal @spignal]

The French government this week wanted to organise a big conference on working 4 days a week, but then realised Wednesday and Thursday are bank holidays and everyone is taking Friday off.

France in May: you can't even get enough people for a meeting to discuss working less

[Pietro Bellini @Pietro_Bell]

"Trovandone condivisione"

[Quirinale @Quirinale]

#Quirinale:

[Micol Sarfatti @micolsar]

L’annuncio sui BTP con voce da guerra nucleare dopo il reggaeton da spiaggia è quasi film d’autore #Sanremo2024

[Pietro Bellini @Pietro_Bell]

@lorepregliasco Auto-cover solo da Massimo Ranieri in su