“The CEO used to be an elite spy.” FTM journalist Sebastiaan Brommer reveals how European health and government data ended up with a U.S. firm tied to ex-Israeli intelligence – and the risks that poses. 🎧 Here's the latest episode: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

A “secure” messaging firm used by hospitals and courts across Europe can actually access users’ messages — and is now owned by a U.S. company run by former Israeli spies. In our newest episode of the @ftm.eu podcast, @sebasbrommersma.bsky.social explains it all: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

"Between Flags", our documentary on the division of Cyprus and Turkey's growing influence on the island, is now available on YouTube - with English subs www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1y7...

Google, the world’s largest search engine operating three in four smartphones, has played Brussels like a fiddle – shaping laws, silencing rivals, and calling it "innovation". The chart shows how Big Tech bankrolls Brussels’ top think tanks. Read our latest story here: www.ftm.eu/articles/goo...

How Google won friends and influenced people - while slowly gobbling up a quarter of all ad revenue on the internet. Here's my look at two decades of Google’s ruthless tactics to secure its dominance. www.ftm.eu/articles/goo...

Cyprus: a divided island with a dark history of violence and occupation. How do Greek and Turkish Cypriots find connection in a country where politicians would rather see them separated? Our very first documentary is out now on VRT MAX and airs this Friday on VRT Canvas: www.vrt.be/vrtmax/a-z/n...

Several suspects were arrested earlier this year in a NATO corruption scandal. Few months later, the US dropped charges against four of them —despite strong evidence. @jesse-pinster.bsky.social & @simonvandorpe.bsky.social dig into it in ep.16 of the @ftm.eu podcast: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXl2...

In ep.15 of the @ftm.eu podcast, @jesse-pinster.bsky.social tells us all about how Viktor Orbán handed over Hungary's defence industry to one of his business allies. Watch/listen on YouTube and all podcast platforms: open.spotify.com/episode/7MAc...

🎙️New podcast: As Europe ramps up defence spending, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán has handed his country’s defence industry to a trusted ally. Journalist Jesse Pinster uncovers how EU funds and state assets are funnelled into Orbán’s inner circle – and why Brussels seems powerless to stop it. Listen now 👇

🏆 We’re honoured to receive the Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for Journalism 2025 for our cross-border investigation The Shadow Fleet Secrets. Read the investigation here: www.ftm.eu/files/the-sh...

💥 Here’s what you need to know about #Natogate, the corruption scandal that broke today, in 10 skeets #bagsofcash #ammunition #NSPA (link to full stories below)

Three suspects (incl the CEO of a big Turkish arms company), involved in major bribery cases related to NATO, were about to be extradited from European jails to the U.S. But then something happened… Read our @ftm.eu investigation together with @lesoir.be @knack.be and La Lettre. #NatoGate

💰 𝗔 𝗕𝗲𝗹𝗴𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲. €𝟭𝟱𝟬𝗠 𝗶𝗻 𝗘𝗨 𝗮𝗶𝗱. 𝗕𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁. Virunga was meant to protect nature – instead, EU money helped fund a crypto-fuelled project in Congo. 🎧 Listen to our latest episode on our website, app and on major streaming services here: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

🇪🇺💰 𝐌𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐔 𝐚𝐢𝐝. 𝐀 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐠𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞. 𝐀 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐨. What began as a conservation project to protect Virunga National Park became a story of conflict, broken promises – and Bitcoin mining in the rainforest. 🎙️ Journalist Olivier van Beemen investigates 👇 www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

In ep.#14 of the @ftm.eu podcast, journalist @oli4vb.bsky.social reveals how over €150M in EU funds fueled a Belgian prince's failed conservation dream in Congo’s Virunga Park: open.spotify.com/episode/5AkN...

⚠️ Since the piece was published, 39 MEPs from 4 political groups have written to the @ec.europa.eu to express their "deep concerns" that EU subsidies, alongside national taxpayer funds, have directly financed #spyware companies.

Really enjoyed speaking with @emmaduchatinier.bsky.social and @alexfanta.bsky.social on the @ftm.eu podcast about my investigation into 🇪🇺European funding for commercial #spyware companies. Thanks for having me! 🙏 📺 Watch: youtu.be/htXwY5KQzas?... 🎧 Listen: www.ftm.eu/articles/eur...

Op 14 oktober presenteert @brusselsenieuwe.bsky.social het grote Europawoordvoerders-verkiezingsdebat, gepresenteerd door Sander van Vliet, Bijou van der Borst, Yves Lacroix en mijzelf. Kom dat zien in @nieuwspoort.bsky.social: www.nieuwspoort.nl/programma/he...

Ep.11 of the @ftm.eu podcast: European companies are plundering Senegal's seas. Local fishermen’s nets are coming back empty. The culprit? European fishing companies. With livelihoods disappearing, many young West-Africans see no option but to migrate to Europe. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni vowed to solve Italy’s migration challenges by building offshore migrant centres in Albania to process asylum seekers. Three years on, the hubs are half-empty, construction costs have ballooned into millions and courts keep stalling progress.

In ep.10 of the @ftm.eu podcast, journalist James Imam tells us all about Meloni's €70M migration fiasco: alleged human rights abuses, half-empty hubs, ballooning costs and legal chaos. "Italians are paying for prisons in a foreign country that are leading to great suffering"

In 2021, von der Leyen texted Pfizer’s CEO ahead of a multi-billion € vaccine deal. When @alexfanta.bsky.social asked to see the texts, the Commission refused. In episode #9 of the @ftm.eu podcast, we unpack #Pfizergate with @lise-witteman.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

Daniel Křetínský is a Czech billionaire businessman who built his fortune on coal – all the while receiving hundreds of millions of euros for green subsidies from the EU. In our latest podcast episode, journalists Hazel Sheffield and Sofia Cherici unpick his vast empire: www.ftm.nl/s/50a39

Veilige routes vergroten, gevaarlijke overtochten beperken – naar het Canadese voorbeeld. Dat is de verkiezingsinzet van @d66.nl op migratie. Maar kan dat wel in Europa? Voor @brusselsenieuwe.bsky.social sprak ik met @annemarijke.bsky.social over de nieuwe migratiekoers van haar partij:

2025 is a record-breaking year for claims filed by fossil fuel and mining firms against democratic policies – marking a grim milestone in a surge of polluting industries seeking compensation for lost profits via a secretive tribunal. For @ftm.eu with contributions by ao @anilyilmaz.bsky.social

Europe’s most powerful political party has picked an unexpected enemy: NGOs. After it claimed Brussels was secretly bankrolling green lobbyists, journalists Lise Witteman and Hans Wetzels found a very different story. Watch the full episode here: www.ftm.nl/s/f37b9

🎙️ Episode #7 of the @ftm.eu podcast: After the @eppgroup.bsky.social claimed Brussels was secretly funding green lobbyists, @lise-witteman.bsky.social & Hans Wetzels uncovered a very different story. The EPP is scapegoating NGOs as it backpedals on the Green Deal. 🔗 www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

When French distributors faced a crop shortage, they used cheap Spanish bulk wine and falsely labeled it as Vin de France. Watch our latest podcast episode to find out how this "solution” quickly became one of the biggest wine frauds in recent years: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

Your “French” wine might not be French at all. 🍷 In episode #6 of the @ftm.eu podcast, journalist & wine connoisseur Barnaby Eales dives into how fraudsters passed off millions of litres of Spanish bulk wine as premium French bottles. www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

Forever chemicals are everywhere, even in our drinking water. And they're not going anywhere. In this episode of FTM The Podcast, hosts Emma du Chatinier and Alexander Fanta discuss the risks of these chemicals with physicist Thomas Goorden. Watch the full episode here: lnkd.in/dyXYyACc

In episode #5 of the @ftm.eu podcast, investigative journalist Thomas Goorden reveals how the EU — swayed by industry lobbying — is disregarding alarming levels of “forever chemicals” in our food and drinking water: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/f...

Episode #4 of the @ftm.eu Podcast with @henkwillem.bsky.social and @salsabilfayed.bsky.social: How a vulture capitalist that profits from stolen Palestinian land got a hold of Europe's festivals, @boilerroom.tv, and many more cultural spaces. open.spotify.com/episode/5Vpb...

Episode #3 of the Follow the Money podcast is out now! @birteschohaus.bsky.social tells us how Western shipowners have made billions by selling rusty oil tankers to Russia’s shadow fleet — helping Putin dodge sanctions and fund his war in Ukraine. open.spotify.com/episode/3Agg...

A new episode of the @ftm_eu podcast is out! @alexfanta and @simonvandorpe unpack the Huawei corruption scandal that rocked Brussels. Available on FTM.EU, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Podcasts 👉 www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

Who really pulls the strings in Europe? In our brand new podcast we uncover the hidden players shaping the continent. In the first episode, out now, we dive into the toxic tactics of fast fashion giant Shein. Reporter Yara van Heugten reveals how the Chinese app may be losing its shine.

Big news! @ftm.eu has launched a podcast, with @emmaduchatinier.bsky.social and yours truly as co-hosts. Our first episode zooms in on Shein’s toxic business model. Tune in for free: www.ftm.eu/articles/pod...

De nieuwe Landbouwvisie van Eurocommissaris Hansen, werd vandaag besproken in Brussel. “De wind waait positief voor Nederland”, stelde de aanwezige Nederlandse Landbouwminister Femke Wiersma (BBB) na afloop van de Raad voor Landbouw en Visserij. brusselsenieuwe.nl/wiersma-in-b...

Europese #defensie staat op een kruispunt. 800 miljard investeringen, steun voor Oekraïne en groeiende zorgen over de VS. In mijn nieuwsbrief Defensie & #Veiligheid duik ik in de #EU defensieplannen en wat ze voor Nederland betekenen. Abonneren kan hier 👇 shop.brusselsenieuwe.nl/product/defe...

BREAKING: De Belgische politie viel vanochtend binnen bij woningen van Huawei-lobbyisten in een grootschalig corruptieonderzoek. Zij zouden Europarlementariërs hebben omgekocht om Huawei’s belangen te behartigen. In totaal werden 21 adressen doorzocht. #HuaweiGate

Luxe reizen, cadeaus en mogelijk contant geld in ruil voor publieke steun voor Huawei. Belgische autoriteiten verdenken de lobbyisten van het omkopen van Europarlementariërs. FTM onthult hoe Huawei via slimme connecties en gerichte lobbycampagnes in Europa invloed vergaarde. #HuaweiGate

Bijna een jaar lang hadden hoge Israëlische militairen zonder de juiste accreditatie toegang tot het Europees Parlement. De groep, berucht om haar extreme standpunten over de toekomst van Palestina, wist in het Parlement zelfs een conferentie te organiseren.

Without proper accreditation, a group of Israeli military officers spent a year quietly lobbying in the European Parliament, pushing their hardline stance on Gaza. They even hosted a conference. Who let them in?

“Act big and be big”: Von Der Leyen wil de Europese auto-industrie redden, ook als de gemaakte CO2-reductie afspraken daarvoor moeten worden aangepast. Voor @brusselsenieuwe.bsky.social: brusselsenieuwe.nl/act-big-and-...

It’s been two days since the new EU Commission took office. I tried to spice up their (slow-tv) introduction video’s. We better start studying their jobs in order to keep an eye on them 👀. Song: The Rembrandts- I’ll be there for you

Didier Reynders was tot afgelopen zaterdag Eurocommissaris voor Justitie – nu wordt hij door de Belgische politie verdacht van witwassen. Hij zou geld hebben witgewassen via de Nationale Loterij, waar hij als minister tot 2011 verantwoordelijk voor was. www.ftm.nl/artikelen/eu...

1000 euro korting op een tv! Onweerstaanbare Black Friday Deals! Koop nu of heb later spijt! Én een prestigieuze duurzaamheidscertificering, webwinkel Bol heeft het allebei. Ik vroeg Bol hoe zij die dingen met elkaar rijmen. Dus twijfel je nog of je een dealtje moet meepakken? Eerst even lezen 👇