Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday blasted back against charges by Moldova’s President, who said Moscow plans to overthrow her country.
President Maia Sandu spoke on Monday about an alleged Russian plot to have groups of saboteurs attack Moldovan government buildings, take hostages, and commit other acts of violence, with the intent of putting Moldova “at the disposal of Russia” and derail its plans to join the European Union.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Tuesday dismissed those claims as “absolutely unfounded and unsubstantiated.”
However, it’s been reported for months that Russia has its sites set on Moldova after its invasion of Ukraine. Russian officials as far back as April have spoken publicly of escalating their offensive into Transnistria, a breakaway republic recognized internationally as part of Moldova, which led the European Union to investigate ways to ramp up military support to the former Soviet republic situated on Ukraine’s southwestern border.
Meanwhile, Moldova has been placed under EU Civil Protection while the organization considers its petition for full membership. It was granted EU membership candidate status on the same day as Ukraine.
President Sandu’s claim on Monday came a week after neighboring Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said his country had intercepted plans by Russian secret services to destroy Moldova. Moldovan intelligence officials later said they had confirmed the allegations—despite Russia’s Foreign Ministry asserting Ukraine had invented its claims, calling them “a myth.”
