Kremlin propaganda falsely claims that President Maia Sandu said Ukraine is a source of arms smuggling and that Moldova will send troops to that country.
NEWS: Following a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC), the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, reportedly said that Ukraine and the Transnistrian region represent sources of arms smuggling into the country's territory. Furthermore, Sandu allegedly said that the Republic of Moldova intends to send its troops to Ukraine along with the so-called “coalition of the willing”.
In March 2025, American journalist Tucker Carlson said that Ukraine sold American weapons on the black market, obtaining approximately 20% of their market value. According to him, a significant portion of the weaponry delivered to Kyiv by the United States reached the international black market. Carlson emphasized that these weapons are now in the possession of various armed groups worldwide, including the Palestinian movement Hamas and Mexican drug cartels.
NARRATIVES: 1. Chișinău accuses Ukraine of being a source of arms smuggling. 2. Chișinău plans to send military troops to Ukraine.
PURPOSE: To present Ukraine as a major source of insecurity for the Republic of Moldova by directly associating it with arms smuggling and the export of risks generated by the war. To create the false perception that the Republic of Moldova intends to involve itself militarily in the war in Ukraine by sending troops, suggesting the abandonment of constitutional neutrality and exposing the country to security risks. To generate anxiety among the population and erode public support for cooperation with Ukraine and Western partners.
Maia Sandu did not accuse Ukraine of trafficking. She only said that the war favors trafficking.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: Claims that Maia Sandu blamed Ukraine for arms smuggling into the territory of the Republic of Moldova represent a false interpretation of her statements. On Monday, March 23, following the National Security Council meeting, Maia Sandu indeed announced that the risk of a high volume of arms trafficking represents a problem, but she mentioned that this is caused by the war in Ukraine and the specific nature of the Moldovan-Ukrainian border, a large portion of which is not de facto controlled by Moldovan authorities due to the separatist regime in Tiraspol. “Obviously, in the context where we have a war in the neighboring country, access to weapons is very high. There is also a high risk that some of these weapons will be brought or that there will be attempts to bring them illegally into the Republic of Moldova. We also have specific vulnerabilities, and these have to do with the Transnistrian region on the segment uncontrolled by the constitutional authorities. Regarding arms trafficking, you are all aware there have been cases discussed in the public sphere. As I said earlier, the source is the war in Ukraine, but also the Transnistrian region”. Therefore, Maia Sandu did not blame Ukraine, but rather the war in that country, which was provoked by Russia.
Moldova is not sending troops to war. It is only willing to help with demining after the war
Maia Sandu’s statements regarding the Republic of Moldova's participation in the “Coalition of the Willing” after peace is signed in Ukraine were also misinterpreted. The article title claiming Sandu intends to “send military personnel to Ukrainian territory” is manipulative. The Moldovan president said that the Republic of Moldova is ready to continue providing support to Ukraine for demining, clarifying that this can only happen after the conclusion of the war. “The Republic of Moldova already offers support to Ukraine in the form of demining training, and this is the work we can do and have offered should there be a final agreement from the members of the coalition of the willing for the Republic of Moldova to join. The Republic of Moldova can do that (and the Constitution of the Republic of Moldova allows this) and I believe it is important for us to be part of this effort. As I said earlier, regarding demining, our specialists can provide training and participate in demining on the condition that the war in Ukraine ends and, respectively, demining activities can be carried out during peacetime”.
The claims referencing statements by controversial American journalist Tucker Carlson regarding the smuggling of weapons that the Ukrainian army received from the USA have no factual basis. Veridica has previously debunked similar fake news that reached the public space in Romania.
BACKGROUND: On March 23, the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, convened the National Security Council to discuss measures designed to combat cross-border crime. According to the Moldovan Presidency, talks focused on the main trends generated by the amplification of this phenomenon: trafficking in weapons, drugs and human beings, as well as economic crime.
Chișinău's concerns regarding possible cases of arms trafficking were confirmed in November 2025, when Romanian customs officers discovered a truck with weaponry about to enter Romania after it had been allowed to exit the Republic of Moldova.
