President on Vladimir Plahotniuc's visits to Russian Federation

Former democrat leader Vladimir Plahotniuc paid several secret visits to the Russian Federation. These took place last year before the elections, as well as this year. The information was confirmed by President Maia Sandu during a press conference.

The clarifications were made in the context of an investigation by The Insider, which suggests that Vladimir Plahotniuc has made regular visits to the Russian Federation in the past two years, where he allegedly met with high-ranking officials from the Russian presidential administration, including Dmitri Kozak. The visits were reportedly in the context of the elections in the Republic of Moldova.

According to President Maia Sandu, these visits 'further confirm Vladimir Plahotniuc's collaboration with Kremlin'.

'Regarding the visits to the Russian Federation, we previously had information indicating this. Now that the list of all false identities and names used has been revealed, the institutions could verify the flights Plahotniuc took to Moscow, confirming further collaboration with Kremlin, as well as these visits that took place last year before the elections and this year,' said Maia Sandu.

The head of state mentioned that 'for six years, Vladimir Plahotniuc has been internationally wanted,' and following his arrest 'the actions of the institutions in the Republic of Moldova are directed towards ensuring the extradition process happens as soon as possible'.

'The sooner he comes home, the better, because we all want justice to be served. The Prosecutor’s Office can tell you what exactly this file contains. I would not focus too much on the declarations made by the lawyer, as we have seen before that he made false statements. The actions of the institutions in the Republic of Moldova are aimed at ensuring that the extradition process happens as soon as possible, and we hope to have good cooperation with the Greek institutions so that this happens soon. For myself and for all honest citizens of this country, it is important that justice is done,' said Maia Sandu.

Former Democratic leader Vladimir Plahotniuc and ex-deputy Constantin Țuțu were detained on 22 July at Athens International Airport while attempting to fly to Dubai. The operation took place in the context of an international effort, both being under Interpol's red notice.

The General Prosecutor's Office announced that Vladimir Plahotniuc expressed his consent for extradition yesterday. His Greek lawyer sent a letter to the prosecutors in this regard. The request will be analyzed by Greek prosecutors, and later, Moldovan authorities will be informed of the decision.

The extradition request is based on charges of fraud and money laundering with aggravating circumstances, as well as for setting up and leading a criminal organization.