President about Russia’s “second target”: Kremlin wants to control Moldova in order to use it against Ukraine

The Russian Federation has not given up its objective of imposing control over the Republic of Moldova, and Moscow’s interest in our country is determined primarily by its geographic position and the war in Ukraine.  President Maia Sandu made the statement at a talk show, after the publication of a New York Times article about Russia’s plans to destabilize the Republic of Moldova. The head of state pointed out that control from Moscow would mean international isolation for our country.

"When you control power, it means you have subordinated the Republic of Moldova to the Kremlin’s interests, and then the Kremlin decides, not Moldovans or the people elected by the citizens of the Republic of Moldova. We know from history what Moscow does with one country or another, and we see what is happening in other states and, obviously, if this were to happen, it would isolate us internationally. On the one hand, Russia has demonstrated its inability to help its partners; we can see that it can no longer even support the regime in Tiraspol, which it has backed for three decades. At the same time, if you are Russia’s partner in everything, in its aggression against the peaceful world, then you cannot expect help from other states, from the free world. We are talking about peace and war, about countries that want peace—and there are more of them—and about countries that are aggressors; in this case we are talking about the Russian Federation," the president warned.

"Russia would like to strike Ukraine also from our side, from our border, and at the same time we would become a bridgehead toward the European Union. This is what I was talking about," the head of state stressed.

Maia Sandu underlined that the warnings regarding Moscow’s intentions are not new, as the authorities in Chișinău have repeatedly spoken about Russia’s attempts to destabilize the Republic of Moldova and to influence internal political processes. The president noted that in recent years the Republic of Moldova has managed to significantly reduce its dependencies on the Russian Federation, including in trade, remittances, and, most importantly, in the energy sector.

According to Maia Sandu, Moscow has previously used energy dependence as a tool of political pressure on Chișinău.

"In recent years we have managed to reduce, to eliminate, our dependence in the energy sector; this was the most serious dependency, because every time the Kremlin did not like what was happening in Chișinău, it turned off the natural gas tap and the country was left in the dark. Consequently, the country had to comply with the demands coming from Moscow. Together with the citizens, during this difficult period marked by many crises and price increases, we have managed to diversify the Republic of Moldova’s energy supply, and today Russia can no longer blackmail us," the head of state said.

Given that it no longer has the same economic and energy levers, the Russian Federation is turning to more sophisticated methods, Maia Sandu believes. Among these, the head of state listed information manipulation, propaganda, and attempts to influence electoral processes.

"What does Russia do when it no longer has the levers it had in the past? It resorts to more sophisticated actions, first and foremost through information manipulation. Even if we have broken away economically from Russia, we are still in Russia’s information space; Russia’s information space is still present. Our citizens speak Russian and therefore watch entertainment shows and so‑called news programs that are not news, but forms of propaganda, as well as various forms of interference in elections. It is clear that the Russian Federation wants to control the power in Chișinău not because we are a big country or because we have metals or land, but because we are geographically positioned in a way that is convenient for Russia to complicate the situation in Ukraine and to harm European states," the president said.

Maia Sandu assured that, for now, there is no danger of Russian troops approaching the border of the Republic of Moldova, as Russian forces are not making significant advances at the front. In the absence of major gains on the battlefield, Russia continues to attack Ukraine with ballistic missiles, Shahed drones and other weapons, striking the civilian population as well.

"We see that Russia is not advancing on the front. For years now the Russian army has been more or less in the same positions, with minor changes, but in the meantime, because it cannot advance on the front, the Kremlin is mercilessly striking with ballistic missiles, with Shaheds, with all kinds of other bombs and deadly weapons, hitting civilians who are sleeping in their homes and going about their work, and through this trying to bring Ukraine to its knees. So, there is currently no danger that Russia will reach Odesa, because the Russian army is far from Odesa, and it is clear that they have not given up and, no matter how difficult the situation is, including economically—because it is clear that due to the war Russia has spent enormous resources—they still do not abandon this aggressive plan to subdue Ukraine and then move further," the president explained.

Maia Sandu’s statements come in the context of a recent investigation published by The New York Times, according to which Russia has prepared for the Republic of Moldova an operation to seize political control, following Ukraine. According to the American newspaper, the plan is part of the Kremlin’s strategy to weaken the European Union and NATO from within.