Russia’s government-run news agencies have lately taken an interest in Moldova, a tiny democratic country next to Ukraine. On Tuesday, for example, an outlet of Sputnik news criticized the appointment of a new head prosecutor to fight corruption in Moldova, a former Soviet state well on its way to joining the European Union.
Perhaps one reason for this scrutiny: A new EU-funded report on progress toward honest governance in Europe finds Moldova to be a “surprise” performer on measures like transparency and judicial independence. The country of some 3 million people now even outshines a few EU member states such as Greece and Romania in fighting corruption.
For Moscow, a cleaner Moldova would mean less opportunity to influence its politics with illicit money and knock back Moldova’s prospects of EU membership. In an election last October, the equivalent of at least $15 million was transferred from Russia into the accounts of some 130,000 Moldovan citizens to influence their vote, according to Moldovan police. Hundreds of people have so far been fined for taking such payments.
With parliamentary elections set for Sept. 28, Moldova is not only hastening its anti-corruption reforms, but also receiving massive assistance from the EU as well as from NATO. On July 4, President Maia Sandu will hold an unusual summit with top EU leaders to deepen ties with the bloc of 27 nations.
Moldova has “demonstrated remarkable determination to pursue reforms and align with EU values despite facing major challenges and external pressure by the Kremlin and its proxies,” reported Sven Mikser, the EU rapporteur on Moldova.
For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned European leaders of Moldova’s importance on June 11: “For three decades now, Russia has tried to keep Moldova in poverty and instability, to bring it fully under its control. If Europe loses in Moldova this year, Russia will feel emboldened to interfere even more, taking from you your resources, sovereignty, even history.”
Ms. Sandu, who was elected in 2020 on an anti-corruption platform, acknowledges the difficulty of fighting off Russian meddling. “We do learn every day by new attempts and new ways through which Russia tries to interfere with our internal … political processes, democratic processes,” Ms. Sandu said. “It is going to be tough, but we do want Moldovans to decide for Moldova at the parliamentary elections, not [the] Kremlin.”
