Pro-Russian forces buy Moldovan voters

Police claim that a Russian-run network is bribing tens of thousands of citizens

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Maja Sandu wants a second presidential term, Photo: Reuters
Maja Sandu wants a second presidential term, Photo: Reuters
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

Pro-Russian forces are interfering in Moldova's upcoming presidential election by paying off tens of thousands of voters in a wide-ranging plot to sabotage Chisinau's push for closer ties with the European Union, police said yesterday.

Incumbent President Maja Sandu presents the October 20 election as a test for her pro-European policies. The elections will be held in parallel with a referendum where voters will decide whether Moldova should become a member of the bloc.

Sandu, who is seeking a second term, has long accused Russia of trying to topple her government by various means, which Moscow denies.

National police chief Vjorel Cernautanu said more than 130.000 Moldovans had been bribed by a Russian-run network to vote against the referendum and in favor of Russia-friendly candidates, in what he called an "unprecedented direct attack," Reuters reported.

"We are facing a widespread phenomenon of financing and corruption aimed at disrupting the electoral process in Moldova," Černautanu told reporters. He added that in September alone, around 15 million dollars were transferred to accounts opened in the Russian bank Promsvyazbank.

The most vocal opponent of EU membership, fugitive pro-Russian businessman Ilan Shor, who was convicted in absentia last year for his role in stealing billions of dollars from Moldovan banks, offered payments last month to anyone who votes against European integration in a referendum, according to Reuters.

Moldova, with a majority Romanian-speaking population and a large Russophone minority, has alternated between pro-Russian and pro-Western governments since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

A record 11 candidates are participating in this month's elections.

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