The PAS Cabinet has created chaos in Moldova. It wants to sever ties with Gazprom, while the USA is grooming a successor to Maia Sandu, reads a website promoting Kremlin policies. The website also states that Maia Sandu is plotting a coup against herself. The narratives are designed the smear the reputation of the pro-European government in Chișinău and to destabilize the internal context in the Republic of Moldova.
NEWS: “What lies behind the accusations targeting “pro-Russian forces” regarding a possible coup?” The Mejdurecie portal writes that, during her visit to Bucharest, while talking to the Romanian press, Maia Sandu referred to pro-Russian forces possibly planning to overthrow the current pro-European government. These forces are allegedly tied to criminal organizations and will act to prevent reforms, especially in the field of the judiciary. The publication claims that there are no pro-Russian parties and forces in the Republic of Moldova, in this respect quoting Rotislav Ishchenko, a commentator for the “Rossiya Segodnya” (Russia Today) news agency. Ischchenko believes that, “overall, the pro-Russian track of the Socialists in Chișinău, and of the Communists before them, consisted in the fact that they maintaining good economic relations with Russia, without changing the pro-European political strategy, because Moldova doesn’t have energy resources of its own, while the agricultural products in Moldovan orchards and fields cannot be sold anywhere else.” The publication further notes that “the Government is deliberately causing a break with the Russian energy giant Gazprom”, refusing any sort of negotiations.
It is the author’s opinion that the government is working with a number of scenarios, including the destruction of the opposition, “framing left-wing protests and banning PSRM, Shor Party or declaring a state of war”, creating chaos against the backdrop of the global energy crisis. “Moldova is only part of this plan, which is why the government is acting in concert with other Western powers. After the chaos, society demands order, and the government will introduce new and harsh oversight rules at political and financial level, etc. The Moldovan leadership will act according to the instructions it receives. […] Foreign troops might be brought to the Republic of Moldova. The country will be under the West’s full protection”, Mejdurecie writes. The author also claims that some Romanian elites are circulating a rumor that “the head of the Moldovan state is serving the interests of Russia and Germany. The mission of Moldovan decision-makers is to create the ideal context facilitating the coming to power of forces loyal to Moscow and Berlin”.
The publication further mentions an additional scenario, whereby “a successor” to Maia Sandu is being groomed, more specifically the new head of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, Veronica Drăgălin, a former federal prosecutor in the USA, who shares physical traits with Maia Sandu and who also equally held a high-ranking position in Washington.
NARRATIVES: 1. There are no pro-Russian parties and forces in the Republic of Moldova. 2. Moldova can buy natural gas only from Russia. 4. The Government is deliberately severing ties with Gazprom. 5. The PAS Cabinet and Maia Sandu are creating chaos in order to bring in foreign troops, pushing the country under the West’s protection. 6. The United States are grooming a successor to Maia Sandu.
PURPOSE: The narratives are meant to smear the reputation of the pro-European government in Chișinău and exonerate the pro-Russian opposition, who’s had run-ins with the law, being accused of corruption. They are equally trying to destabilize the domestic context in the Republic of Moldova as well as to accuse the authorities of handing over control of the country to Western powers.
BACKGROUND: After taking office in 2021, Maia Sandu’s pro-Western administration has faced the most serious crises in the history of the Republic of Moldova – the gas crisis, triggered by an increase in fuel prices on global markets and, as a result, a record-high inflation and soaring prices for goods and services. At the same time, the Republic of Moldova is seriously affected by the war in neighboring Ukraine, being home to approximately a hundred thousand refugees. Furthermore, access to Eastern markets is hampered. Chișinău is additionally exposed to a military risk coming from the separatist region of Transnistria, backed by Russia and outside the de facto control of Moldovan authorities. Transnistria hosts stockpiles of Russian ammo and two Russian battalions, adding to its own troops. Conversely, Moldova’s national army is underequipped and undertrained, thus being unable to fend of a possible aggression.
Former president Igor Dodon, who is currently under house arrest, has on a number of occasions threatened to stage protests if people are left without heat this coming winter, considering the high risk Gazprom might suspend its gas supplies to the Republic of Moldova. Another party with a criminal history, led by wanted fugitive Ilan Shor, had equally threatened Moldova will suffer hunger, cold and poverty. The opposition has staged a number of protests, including in Găgăuzia, yet they weren’t large-scale.
In recent weeks, we’ve seen dozens of false bomb threats targeting state institutions and public buildings. The authorities said the alerts are carefully-planned actions orchestrated from outside the Republic of Moldova with a view to destabilizing the country, labeling them elements of hybrid warfare designed to stir public unrest and panic.
President Maia Sandu has last month paid a visit to Bucharest, where she addressed the vulnerabilities of the Republic of Moldova. President Sandu told a press conference she would ask Romania for help in case Russia attempts to attack the Republic of Moldova.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: Parties promoting closer relations with Russia have always existed in the Republic of Moldova. They have always been represented in Parliament and even held the power during several election cycles. These are parties largely supported by elderly people, Russian-language speakers, but also citizens who are manipulated by the parties’ affiliated media and the Russian media outlets that dominate the Moldovan public sphere. The Party of Socialists led by Igor Dodon, for instance, is promoting closer relations with the Russian Federation and accession to the Eurasian Union, bragging about obtaining observer status at the level of this organization. PSRM was funded in election campaigns with obscure sponsorships obtained from the Russian Federation, the Bahamas operation being a case in point. Furthermore, the former president of the Republic of Moldova, Igor Dodon, actually stands accused of collaborating with the Russian special services, under the codename Kremlinovich.
As regards the narrative about Moldova being unable to purchase natural gas from sources other than Russia, it is a false claim. Moldova is indeed reliant on energy imports, but after the completion of the Iași-Ungheni pipeline, Moldova is now able to purchase gas from other sources. This happened in the autumn of last year, during the energy crisis, when for the first time in its history, the Republic of Moldova purchased gas from markets other than the Russian one. The current government is not interested in severing ties with Gazprom, as the author of the article suggests. On the contrary, the authorities said they would do everything in their power to ensure citizens have gas this winter. Moldova has already signed a 5-year contract with Gazprom, negotiated last year in the presence of Moldova’s deputy Prime Minister, Andrei Spânu. On the other hand, the Kremlin is known to use the Russian energy giant as leverage to pressure countries that rely on Russian gas imports.
The narrative about Russia being Moldova’s only outlet for its exports is equally false. The most important market for Moldovan goods is the European market, accounting for approximately 65% of Moldova’s exports. According to official figures, exports of goods addressing European Union countries (EU27) totaled 1208.1 million USD over January-May 2022 alone, accounting for 64.4% of the country’s total exports. On the other hand, exports addressing CSI countries stood at 284.5 million USD over January-May 2022, tantamount to 15.2% of total exports. Over January-May 2022, the top destinations for Moldova’s exports were the following: Romania (30.4% of total exports), Italy (9.4%), Turkey (9.2%), Ukraine (8.4%), Germany (5.7%) and the Russian Federation (4.9%). Moldovan exports to Russia dropped visibly starting 2014, due to the embargo Moscow imposed on Moldovan products in response to Chișinău signing the EU Association Agreement. The Kremlin has frequently used economic blackmail and embargos on Moldovan products to exert political pressure in Chișinău, which resulted in Moldovan producers seeking other markets to sell their products. At the same time, in the context of the war in Ukraine and facing restricted access to Eastern markets, the EU has increased quotas for a number of Moldovan export-bound goods.
The author of the article contradicts himself several times in this article. First, the very title suggests Maia Sandu is allegedly plotting a coup, but this would mean Maia Sandu seeks to depose herself, given that she is the head of state while the party she founded, PAS, is now in power.
Although it admits it contains some degree of conspiracy, the publication promotes yet another self-contradictory narrative, stating that Maia Sandu is serving the interests of Russia and Germany, while the same time she is plotting to help forces loyal to Moscow and Berlin take power in Chișinău.
Another piece of disinformation that is hard to make sense of is the fact that Maia Sandu would be replaced by another person who bears physical resemblance to her, whom the author claims to be Veronica Drăgălin, who is backed by the USA, just as Maia Sandu was upon returning to the Republic of Moldova from the United States.
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