In the information and propaganda war that Russia is allegedly waging in Europe about which European officials and leaders have expressed their concerns, a BBC report refers to a propaganda network whose activities the authorities managed to suppress.

In particular, the BBC reports that a Russian-backed “propaganda” network to spread anti-Ukraine stories and pay off unnamed European politicians has been dismantled.

According to reports of researchers, this particular network used the popular website Voice of Europe as a means of paying politicians. The Voice of Europe did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment.

The Czech Republic and Poland said the network aimed to influence European politics.

In fact, Czech media, citing intelligence sources, reported that politicians from Germany, France, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Hungary were being paid by Voice of Europe to influence the upcoming elections for the European Parliament.

German newspaper Der Spiegel reported that the money was either delivered in cash at secret meetings in Prague or through cryptocurrency exchanges.

The Czech Republic points to pro-Russian Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk as the mastermind behind the network.

Medvedchuk was arrested in Ukraine soon after the Russian invasion, but was later transferred to Russia as part of an exchange of 50 Russian prisoners of war for the release of 215 Ukrainians.

Czech authorities also named Artyom Marchevsky, claiming he managed the site’s day-to-day operations. Both men were sanctioned by the Czech authorities.

At the same time, Poland’s intelligence service announced that it had conducted searches in the Warsaw and Tychy areas and seized 48,500 euros and 36,000 dollars.

“Money from Moscow was used to pay political actors to spread Russian propaganda,” the intelligence agency said in a statement.

The alleged propaganda network “aimed at carrying out activities against the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine,” it adds.

Polish intelligence did not name the politicians allegedly involved. However, Belgian Prime Minister Alexandre De Croix claimed they included members of the European Parliament.

“For example, it has been revealed that Russia has approached MEPs and paid them to promote Russian propaganda here,” De Croo told Belgian MPs.

The Voice of Europe website now appears to be disabled. An archived version of its homepage published several articles that highlighted internal divisions within European countries and expressed skepticism about support for Ukraine.

Voice of Europe had more than 180,000 followers on Twitter/X.