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Russia Today
a day ago
- Business
- Russia Today
Pro-EU polices have driven up gas prices in Moldova sevenfold
The policies of President Maia Sandu's pro-EU government are hurting Moldova's economy, the nation's former president, Igor Dodon, said on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). However, the country's authorities have no concern about what happens to their people, as they only care about following Brussels' orders, he added. Gas prices in Moldova have jumped sevenfold over the four years Sandu's government has been in power, according to Dodon. 'They are acting on the orders of their Western curators. They do not care what happens to our nation's economy. They only want to push [Moldova] away from the Russian Federation,' said Dodon, who took part in meetings with representatives of several Russian ministries at SPIEF. His words were echoed by another member of the Moldovan delegation at SPIEF, Vadim Fotescu, an MP and member of the opposition Victorie bloc. Moldovan businesses had to 'hit the pause button' in their dealings with Russia because of Sandu's policies, he said at one of the sessions, adding that the nation's entrepreneurs are willing to work with Russia and want to return to its market. Fotescu said that the EU had done nothing for Moldova but subject it to 'credit slavery,' while throwing its businesses under the bus, noting that Moldovan entrepreneurs are now persecuted for having ties to former Soviet republics, including Russia. Exiled Moldovan tycoon Ilan Shor, who is the leader of the Victorie political bloc, confirmed this view at SPIEF, asserting that the West deliberately tries to 'buy off' nations facing economic difficulties to turn them into 'vassals, slaves' who do their masters' bidding. Shor held that this is what has happened to Ukraine, which is pushing its people to die for Western interests in its conflict with Moscow. Dodon stated on Wednesday that Moldova has no other path forward but to return to economic cooperation with Russia and other post-Soviet states. 'Moldova will not survive economically without Russia,' he told Radio Sputnik on the sidelines of SPIEF. According to the politician, the nation's debt has grown twofold over the past four years, and the Moldovan economy grew only by 0.1% in 2024. When Sandu came to power in Moldova in 2020, the former Soviet republic quickly changed course and began to quickly move towards EU and NATO membership. Her pro-Western and anti-Russian bent has triggered mounting domestic pushback driven by economic discontent, accusations of political repression, and a crackdown on the Moldovan Orthodox Church. During her tenure, Sandu has launched crackdowns on opposition parties and media outlets that she describes as criminal entities, while defending her actions as efforts to counter alleged pro-Russian influence.
The Independent
02-04-2025
- Business
- The Independent
UK sanctions ‘pro-Kremlin operation' that tried to rig Moldova EU referendum
The UK has sanctioned a 'pro-Kremlin operation' that attempted to rig Moldova's EU referendum, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has said. The sanctions, announced on Wednesday, target a network of pro-Russian actors named Evrazia operating on behalf of fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor to 'destabilise Moldovan democracy and spread Russia's malign influence', the FCDO said. The department said the asset freezes and travel bans also targeted 'corrupt officials and prosecutors' in Georgia and Guatemala who were 'sabotaging democratic governance and undermining judicial impartiality by abusing their power'. Evrazia, a Russian non-profit, was used by Shor to bribe citizens to vote 'no' in last year's referendum on whether the Moldovan constitution should be amended to include support for EU membership, the FCDO said. Moldovan police have said that approximately 130,000 citizens received a total of 15 million US dollars (£11.5 million) from Evrazia – with payments ranging from 50 dollars (£39) per month for 'supporters' to more than 2,500 dollars (£1,932) per month for 'leaders'. A narrow majority of votes were cast in favour of Moldova's EU aspirations, with the 'Yes' campaign winning by 10,000 votes in a much closer result than widely expected. The founder and director of Evrazia, Nelli Alekseyevna Parutenko, and a member of its management board, Natalia Parasca, as well as Evrazia itself and another of Shor's key political operatives, Marina Tauber, have been sanctioned. Shor, who was previously designated by the UK in 2022, fled Moldova after being sentenced to more than seven years in prison for his involvement in the theft of more than 1 billion dollars from Moldova's banking system in 2014. The FCDO said the sanctions exposed the 'Kremlin's attempts to undermine and destabilise democracies in Eastern Europe' and created a 'more hostile environment for corruption and illicit finance'. Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the sanctions sent a 'clear message'. Mr Lammy added: 'We will not stand idly by as Russia undermines democracy and the rule of law, threatening the national security of countries we consider friends and partners. 'Left unchecked, this kind of insidious corruption can erode the very foundations of our society and open doors for Russia and other malign actors to expand their influence and compromise the stability of our neighbours and the UK. 'We must protect the institutions designed to hold these unscrupulous individuals to account, and the independent investigative journalists whose hard and often dangerous work exposes the truth behind their actions.' The FCDO said it had also sanctioned the leaders of the 'Judicial Clan' in Georgia – a group of party-political judges it said were 'abusing their position to influence court rulings and undermine the rule of law for the benefit of the Georgian Dream party and their control of Georgia's judicial system'. In Guatemala, the FCDO said its sanctions were targeted at former President Alejandro Giammattei and his 'Pacto De Corruptos' ('Pact of the Corrupt') – which the department said was a cabal of officials and prosecutors still operating under the current Attorney General who have sought to undermine the anti-corruption reforms of President Bernardo Arevalo 'by interfering in prosecutions and threatening investigators'. Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty met journalists from the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) on Wednesday to 'express support for their tireless and risky work exposing corruption and bringing those responsible to justice', the FCDO said. The department added that independent investigative reporting by the OCCRP and activities of civil society groups such as Transparency International 'often play a crucial role in informing sanctions of this kind'.
