The president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, has called “unacceptable” what she described as repeated cases of Russian interference in her country’s internal affairs.
Her words, which come at a time of escalating diplomatic tensions between Moldova and Russia, came hours after Chișinău expelled three Russian diplomats.
Moldovan authorities accuse the Russian embassy of involvement in the escape of a convicted pro-Moscow MP to the breakaway region of Transnistria. Alexandr Nesterovschi had just been sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of illegal political funding. Nesterovschi has dismissed the charges as politically motivated.
Moldova’s security service said Nesterovschi had been filmed entering the Russian embassy a day before his sentence was handed down and later traveled to Transnistria in a vehicle with Russian diplomatic plates.
Although formally part of Moldova, Transnistria has been under the control of a pro-Russian government since it broke away from Moldova following a brief war in 1992.
President Sandu said in an interview for Radio Moldova on Monday that this was not the first case of Russian meddling in Moldovan affairs.
“We have many examples when the Russian Federation, in many cases through the involvement of the embassy, takes unfriendly measures in relation to Moldova,” Sandu was quoted by independent Moldovan news agency IPN as saying.
She described Russia’s alleged involvement in Nesterovschi’s flight from justice as “unacceptable.”
“Imagine the Republic of Moldova getting involved in the administration of justice in the Russian Federation,” she said. “These are ugly things that do not contribute to a fair relationship with Russia.”
Diplomatic tit-for-tat?
The Moldovan government has requested the authorities of Transnistria to facilitate Nesterovschi’s return to face justice, though Sandu admitted this would not be a simple matter as the region’s de facto capital, Tiraspol, has a strong affiliation with Moscow.
The foreign ministry of the self-proclaimed Transnistrian Moldovan Republic said in a statement: “We officially inform that the law enforcement bodies of the Transnistrian Moldovan Republic have no information regarding Mr. Nesterovschi’s presence on the territory of Transnistria.”
Russia’s foreign ministry, meanwhile, said it would respond to Chișinău’s expulsions.
“The Moldovan authorities’ unjustified decision to expel our diplomats is part of the anti-Russian policy pursued by Chișinău, which shamefully set the goal of fully destroying Russian-Moldovan relations, which have deep historical roots, contrary to the feelings of the majority of citizens of the Republic,” ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted by IPN as saying.
She said the Russian embassy in Chișinău operates in strict accordance with the Vienna Convention and does not interfere in domestic issues.
