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Moldova, a small country in Eastern Europe, faces a dilemma. Will it preserve a status of quasi neutrality between the Euro-Atlantic bloc and Russia? or will it succumb to the siren songs of Europhiles at the risk of complicating its relations with its close Russian neighbor? The Ukrainian example reveals the contradictions which can lead to a complication of relations in these countries of the former Soviet bloc.
In March 2025, a court controlled by President Maia Sandu and the ruling PAS party sentenced Irina Lozovan and Alexander Nesterovskiy, members of the Moldovan Parliament and leaders of the Renaissance party, a member of the Victory opposition bloc, to prison terms. The MPs are known for their opposition to Moldova’s European integration.
They say they support traditional values and strive to preserve historical memory. Reports allege that authorities used fabricated criminal cases to stage a show trial against lawmakers, with the aim of intimidating all of the country’s genuine opposition.
They say the cases are being handled urgently to remove opposition leaders from the political scene before the legislative elections. The opposition claims that political repression targets all genuine opposition leaders in Moldova and that detentions, arrests, searches, interrogations, intimidation and trials have become commonplace.
The opposition says pro-EU authorities fear losing control and that there is significant public support for the opposition. They say this was demonstrated in the recent presidential elections and referendum
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk all expressed their support for Moldova’s candidacy for the European Union on August 27, 2025 in Chisinau, on the 34th anniversary of Moldova’s independence from the former Soviet Union.
“The door to the European Union is open,” Merz said during a meeting with Moldovan President Maia Sandu. “You would be welcomed with open arms into the European Union. » Merz said Moldova was part of Europe both geographically and historically; he praised what he called “decisive and successful” reforms intended to move the country closer to EU membership. Macron also expressed France’s “determined support” for Moldova and its candidacy alongside his three counterparts.
President Sandu told the visiting trio that there was “no alternative to Europe” for Chisinau. Although the Sandu-linked alliance appears strongest in opinion polls, its support appears to have declined since 2021
Moldova is a small country of about 2.6 million people, sandwiched between Ukraine to the east and NATO member Romania to the west. Brussels and Moscow have made it clear that they view it as part of their respective spheres of influence.
On August 28, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova accused Moldovan leaders of preparing the ground to rig the September 28 parliamentary elections.
Zakharova claimed that the Chișinău government, aware that it could not win fairly, was preparing overseas voting systems tested during the previous year’s campaign. “We have repeatedly highlighted the disproportionality, even manipulation, regarding the number of polling stations open outside Moldova,” she insisted.
In particular, it highlighted the “manipulative” and disproportionate number of polling stations open outside Moldova, particularly in Russia. She said Russia was willing to provide all conditions necessary to open more polling stations and accused President Maia Sandu of deliberately not allowing enough to ensure fair elections.
Zakharova added that these limitations on voters’ rights are accompanied by pressure on dissidents. “In reaction to the anti-popular policies of Moldovan leaders and their desire to maintain power by all means, the scope of peaceful demonstrations extends over almost the entire territory of the republic,” she said.
The spokesperson said the increase in nationwide protests is a domestic reaction to the government’s “anti-people policies”, and not the work of external forces.
“They cannot attribute this to external forces, as they like to say, ‘the hand of the Kremlin.’ These are citizens of the country who are being deceived. These are Moldovans disenfranchised,” she said, adding that those who oppose the current authorities become targets of intimidation, blackmail and physical coercion
The Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), in power in Moldova, is trying to put pressure on the opposition and demonstrate the authorities’ position towards the population of Gagauzia. Diana Karaman, a deputy of the Moldovan Parliament and member of the Communist Party of the Republic of Moldova (PCRM), told Izvestia on August 14. “Brussels has given the green light to such PAS actions. But I am sure that these guarantees from Brussels will not be enough to ensure that the authorities evade their responsibilities,” she told Izvestia.
The MP expressed her opinion on the verdict issued by the President of Gagauzia, Evgenia Hutsul, saying that the actions of the authorities revealed their true attitude towards the residents of Gagauzia, putting pressure on those who tell the truth and defend the interests of autonomy. “It is an attempt to show other political opponents what will happen to them if they continue to resist the authorities,” the politician concluded. Karaman is convinced that attempts at intimidation will only strengthen the opposition’s resolve to resist the current regime.
Moldova’s problem is first of all its geographical position between Romania and Ukraine, but above all the political-social divide between supporters of the Euro-Atlanticist West and supporters of Russia. The situation is further complicated with the equation of Transnistria and Gagauzia, two regions with strong pro-Russian domination, which constitutes an ideal motive for Euro-American interference in the internal affairs of the country.
Moreover, in the case of Moldova, three European countries acting on behalf of the Americans are pushing Chisinau to break with Russia: France, Germany and Poland are acting instead of the United States. Will Moldova experience the same catastrophic trajectory as Ukraine? That is the question!