Moldovan president says Russia couldn't reach Moldova with tanks, elections became new front line

Russia couldn't reach us with its tanks, being stopped by the courage and resilience of Ukraine. So, it found another way: a hybrid assault on our democracy. Elections have become the new front line. Statements to this effect have been made by President Maia Sandu, who delivered a speech on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the Venice Commission. The Moldovan president referred to Russia's attempts to interfere in the country's elections and the need to defend democracies against new threats.

Maia Sandu cautioned that one of the greatest dangers currently threatening democracy was "the war Russia is waging against Europe." "Its most visible front is the brutal aggression against Ukraine. But Russia is also conducting a hybrid war against other European democracies — using drones, cyber-attacks, election meddling and illicit financing," said Maia Sandu, emphasizing that all these threats fully manifested in the recent elections.

"Russia couldn't reach us with its tanks — stopped by the courage and resilience of Ukraine. So, it found another way: a hybrid assault on our democracy. Elections have become the new front line. The ballot box has become the target of a vast hybrid arsenal. Moscow's strategy was systematic: tested in regional and local elections, peaking last year during the presidential campaign and the EU membership referendum — which passed despite massive interference," the head of state pointed out.

The president also said that "the real stake was this year's parliamentary elections — taking control of the parliament, installing a government subordinated to the Kremlin, destroying our democracy, dragging Moldova into a grey zone and using it against Ukraine and Europe."

According to the head of state, Moscow, through "intermediaries and local criminal groups, founded parties overnight — seven in the last three years alone — all financed by the Kremlin, all pretending to be Moldovan voices."

"Such party was declared unconstitutional after a lengthy process. Nonetheless, Moscow immediately created other clones. One of them was even officially launched in Moscow. Many of these intermediaries are well-known figures: corrupt individuals who have never been held accountable, even former judges or prosecutors removed during reforms — now serving a foreign power against their own country. They are supported with huge sums of money circulating invisibly, taking advantage of free capital flow and the opaque world of cryptocurrencies," said the president.

Maia Sandu added that "as law-enforcement institutions blocked conventional channels, the operation shifted to the cryptocurrency area."

"A single digital wallet, discovered by the National Anti-Corruption Center, contained over 100 million euros — funds used for troll farms, fake news sites, protests, and vote-buying," Maia Sandu said.

At the same time, the president denounced irregularities in organizing protests. According to her, investigations revealed lists of participants, transport routes and envelopes with money.

"As the election day neared, intermediaries began openly offering up to 3,000 euros a month to attract people. These gatherings were staged to project an image of discontent and transform it into violence, coordinated by individuals trained abroad," Maia Sandu also said.

The head of state stressed that "an even greater battle took place online," and "the disinformation machine operated on an industrial scale, spreading lies."

"A BBC team infiltrated a troll farm, revealing a coordinated network of TikTok accounts. An NGO dedicated to exposing falsehoods, the Digital Forensic Research Lab, found that these accounts had amassed over 55 million views. In a country with only 2.4 million inhabitants, this scale is staggering.

Even priests were involved — being sent on so-called pilgrimages abroad to be trained in political messaging and how to use social media to influence opinions.

There were also direct threats. Law-enforcement officials protecting election integrity were intimidated, while judges and prosecutors investigating electoral corruption received death threats. A judge was even threatened with beheading," Maia Sandu stated.

Under these conditions, the head of state emphasized the state's efforts to organize transparent and democratic elections — while safeguarding their integrity. According to her, institutions acted in concert, sanctions were introduced for electoral corruption and paid protests, tools were strengthened to block illicit financings, track cryptocurrency flows and prevent physical or cyber sabotage.

The head of state also said that "courts prioritized political corruption cases." "When interference is such extensive, justice cannot proceed at its usual pace — by the time a case concludes, the opponent may have already won. We need mechanisms that act swiftly against illicit money before the harm is done," the president noted.

The official specified that "the external evaluation process of judges and prosecutors, even if not completed, contributed to safeguarding election integrity, and our judicial institutions are developing both the courage and capacity to investigate corruption, thus weakening the impunity of Russia's local intermediaries."

The president also said that law-enforcers had dismantled networks trained abroad to incite violence and fabricate explosives before they could act.

"The police dismantled vote-buying networks just weeks before election day — after months of surveillance. By acting at the right moment, Russia was prevented from having time to rebuild them. Cyber teams adjusted their defense mechanisms in real-time, with generous support from international partners," the head of state stated.

Maia Sandu stressed, in this context, the need to strengthen democracy and define tools to defend it against new threats.

"Together, we must devise legal and institutional tools, in order to defend democracy from new threats. And we must do it quickly. We need to redefine transparency, accountability and political freedom in a world where money, technology and disinformation move faster than the law," concluded the head of state.

President Maia Sandu today attended the ceremony dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the Venice Commission.