LEAD: The West controls several institutions in the Republic of Moldova, including the National Bank, writes the pro-socialist portal www.mejdurecie.md. The publication uses as an argument to justify the statement the refusal of the Central Bank of the Republic of Moldova to allocate money from its reserves for injections into the economy or social projects, as proposed by the leader of the Socialists, Igor Dodon. However, experts draw attention to the risks of such decisions.
NEWS: Recent events have clearly shown that the National Bank of Moldova too is under the total control of financial institutions and international organizations, the so-called "external partners", according to an article published by the portal www.mejdurecie.md., taken over by several media institutions of Russian language in the Republic of Moldova.
The author, who brings up the subject of Western control over the Republic of Moldova and President Maia Sandu, focuses on the National Bank, whose activity is allegedly also directed from the outside. The source uses as an argument the reaction of the international institutions to the initiative of the President of the Socialist Party, Igor Dodon, who said that part of the hard currency reserves of the National Bank of Moldova should be used to mitigate the effects of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The National Bank drew attention to itself after the president of the PSRM, Igor Dodon, launched the idea of using its assets to provide assistance to citizens and the economic environment who have suffered from the pandemic. A wave of accusations has fallen on Dodon", the author writes referring to the statements made by IMF representatives and western diplomats.
"What do all these statements by ambassadors and IMF representatives, and their visits to the NBM and discussions about the financial situation and budget of the Republic of Moldova mean? The answer is obvious: the National Bank and the entire banking system of the Republic of Moldova are administered from outside”.
NARRATIVES: 1. The National Bank of Moldova is controlled from the outside, and for this reason refuses to help the economy and citizens to overcome the crisis caused by the pandemic. 2. Maia Sandu is controlled by the West and acts according to the agenda of foreign entities.
LOCAL CONTEXT / ETHOS: The topic of a supposed influence of the West on politicians and institutions in the Republic of Moldova is frequently addressed by the Russian-language press in the Republic of Moldova and by the one affiliated to the Socialist Party; after the victory of the pro-European Maia Sandu in the presidential elections of November 2020, the frequency of articles on this topic has increased.It seems that the National Bank entered the "list of West-controlled institutions" after repeatedly opposing initiatives, or at least statements by Igor Dodon, both during his time as president and some recent ones in which he called for injecting part of the foreign exchange reserves into the economy or using part of the reserves for social projects.The National Bank became one of the sensitive topics in the Republic of Moldova after the famous bank theft of 2014, when it was alleged that it did not act to prevent the fraud, and even that it actually helped mastermind it. Subsequently, several amendments were introduced to strengthen the activity and increase its independence, actions that were also requested by the international community.
PURPOSE: To present the Republic of Moldova as a target of the West, which is trying to impose its control. 2. To present Maia Sandu as an instrument of the West. 3. (Indirectly) To justify a possible Russian intervention in the Republic of Moldova.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The reaction of the IMF and of the Western diplomats to Igor Dodon's initiatives regarding the use of foreign exchange reserves for various purposes seems logical given the high risks that such a decision would pose.The expert community has also often criticized such initiatives, including recently, after Igor Dodon proposed borrowing from the NBM. The diminishing of foreign exchange reserves can have the effect of devaluing the leu and raising prices.In fact, the IMF does not react only to Igor Dodon’s initiatives, but also to those of the pro-European parties if they can affect the independence of the National Bank. For example, in April 2019, the IMF reacted to an initiative of the NOW Bloc (led by Maia Sandu among others) which sought to dismiss the NBM governor, Octavian Armașu, a former finance minister during the Democratic Party's rule.
GRAIN OF TRUTH: The IMF Representative Rodgers Chawani, the US Ambassador and the Head of the EU Delegation have repeatedly called for the independence of the National Bank to be respected.
