SPICY SCOOPS
There is always a lot of information that we hear and find interesting and newsworthy but don’t publish as part of our investigative reporting—and share instead in this newsletter.
HOLY SMOKE: PUTIN’S KARLOVY VARY PRIEST CAUGHT AT THE FSB HQ’S SHOOTING RANGE
While the KGB past of Russian Orthodox Church head Patriarch Kirill — codename “Mikhailov” — is well known, details of his subordinates’ intelligence ties are usually much murkier. Last week I posted a video on my social media showing Kirill’s former deputy, Metropolitan Hilarion — once head of the Russian Orthodox Church’s foreign relations and later head of its Hungarian branch — at an FSB shooting range. In the clip, Hilarion is seen firing a pistol. Not exactly the image of pious humility — or peace and love — one might expect from the clergy. Multiple experts I consulted, along with Czech journalist Lukáš Prchal of Deník N, identified the weapon as a standard-issue Makarov MP-443 “Grach,” used by both the FSB and the Russian military, and the target as an N4 Russian military type. (Here's Deník N's Czech version of this story.) There's more. Both his and my sources identified the location as being at the FSB’s main headquarters in Moscow on Lubyanka Square — which previously served as the KGB’s HQ.
Moreover, according to the source who provided the footage, Hilarion bragged about his shooting skills, allegedly praised by a high-ranking FSB general friend — though judging from how clumsily he holds the gun, he might want to stick to preaching. The same source says Hilarion has been involved in several business ventures with that FSB general from the Moscow region, which could explain his presence at the shooting range. The footage doesn’t prove Hilarion is an FSB agent or asset like his boss Kirill, but it certainly doesn’t scream “man of peace,” either. Hilarion’s Hungarian chapter adds its own twist. Soon after arriving in Budapest in 2022, he swiftly obtained Hungarian citizenship — and not just him, but his mother as well, under the pretext of “family reunification.” According to multiple sources familiar with the process, this was done with the help of Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén, who oversees diaspora and naturalization matters and had developed a close working relationship with Hilarion. There’s obviously the question of how this could happen, given the national security risks evident from the location where the video was shot.
Then came 2024, when Hilarion became embroiled in a sexual abuse scandal: his former cell attendant, George Suzuki, accused him of unwanted sexual advances and flaunting a lavish lifestyle, backing the claims with photos and recordings. Hilarion was reprimanded and sent home — only to reappear in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, replacing a priest expelled for aiding Russian espionage from the Church of Saint Peter and Paul. More recently, Suzuki has made new allegations linking Hilarion to Semjén and to Russian oligarchs and claims of Hilarion receiving bags of cash. Suzuki also claimed that although Hilarion is still officially assigned to the Czech Republic, he actually continues to spend time in Hungary. Neither Hilarion nor the Hungarian Prime Minister's Office where Semjén works responded to my requests for comment — and we’re not aware of any prosecution against Hilarion by Hungary.
NETHERLANDS PREPARES POSSIBLE ARTICLE 7 AGAINST FICO’S SLOVAKIA
According to my EU diplomatic sources, the Dutch government is seriously considering triggering an Article 7 procedure against Slovakia over its recent constitutional changes. Article 7 of the EU Treaty is a disciplinary mechanism that can ultimately lead to sanctions — including suspension of a member state’s voting rights — if it breaches the Union’s core values such as democracy, rule of law, or human rights. The step follows an October 16 Dutch parliamentary resolution urging a firm response to what lawmakers view as violations of EU law and restrictions on LGBTQ rights. My sources added that the Dutch government is now quietly testing support among other member states but would actually prefer the European Commission to first launch an infringement case before the EU Court of Justice.
This also comes shortly after Robert Fico’s ruling Smer party was expelled from the Party of European Socialists at its Amsterdam congress on October 17, fully losing the protection of its mainstream European family. (Note: tougher EU action against Viktor Orbán’s Hungary also started after his Fidesz party got pushed out from the European People’s Party.) Meanwhile, the result of the Dutch parliamentary elections point to a liberals-led future government — led by an openly gay prime minister — that is expected to be even more critical of Slovakia than the current one. On the other hand, one of my sources also mentioned that the initiative can have unintended consequences — pushing Hungary and Slovakia into an even closer cooperation, including when it comes to vetoing and blocking Ukraine and Russia related joint action.
TRUMP SENDS NURSING HOME TYCOON TO TAKE CARE OF ORBÁN
Donald Trump’s pick for the next US ambassador to Hungary, Benjamin Landa, has surprised many US–Hungary watchers — partly because the appointment came so late. Like other nominees, Landa will face a Senate confirmation hearing that could get interesting, given the paper trail around his businesses. No one quite knows why he was picked, but it’s safe to assume his vetting wasn’t exactly thorough. Landa is a New York businessman who owns or co-owns dozens of nursing homes across the US, several of which have been under heavy scrutiny.
A 2022 American Prospect investigation titled “The Nursing Home Slumlord Manifesto” — which Landa sued over and lost — detailed his record. In 2019, a federal judge found him and his partner liable for threatening over 200 Filipino nurses: “U.S. District Judge Nina Gershon found that the nursing homes’ owners, Benjamin Landa and Bent Philipson, are personally liable for violations of the anti-trafficking law. ... Filipino nurses were not paid the prevailing wages promised in their employment contracts, and that they were required to work in unsafe conditions with inadequate staffing.” And in 2022, New York’s attorney general sued one of Landa’s homes for allegedly misusing $18 million in public funds, while “disinvestment led to chronic understaffing, inhumane conditions, and harm to residents.” And there are many more similar stories.
My sources, closely following US–Hungarian relations, expect Landa to establish a friendly relationship with Viktor Orbán, just as Trump’s previous ambassador, David Cornstein — another New York businessman with a flair for jewelry and gambling — famously did. Their friendship was immortalized by a New York Times story describing the two chatting on Orbán’s plane “stripped to their underwear.” Orbán, ever the charmer, has a knack for turning MAGA allies and Republican ambassadors alike into lobbyists for his cause. He’s due in Washington, D.C. next week, still dreaming of a Trump–Putin “peace summit” in Budapest — and of somehow convincing Trump to drop Russian energy sanctions. We’ll see how that goes.
