The operation, carried out across southern Moldova, revealed a sophisticated Kremlin-backed network that laundered money through Promsvyazbank (PSB)—a Russian bank under sanctions for funding Moscow’s war machine—and deployed Telegram bots to both transfer cash and flood Moldovan social media with pro-Russian propaganda. Police recovered large sums of cash in multiple currencies, Russian bank cards, laptops, and even a luxury Tesla vehicle, tying the scheme to Moscow’s hybrid warfare playbook.
More than 60 raids targeted political party financing schemes and vote-buying operations, a move that follows President Maia Sandu’s July warning of an unprecedented Russian campaign to destabilize Moldova. Sandu has accused Moscow of pouring an estimated €100 million in illicit crypto funding into the elections, backing fake candidates and criminal proxies to undermine the country’s pro-European path.
Evidence seized in this week’s operation shows cross-border financial activity reminiscent of the “Russian Laundromat” scandal, which funneled billions out of Russia through Moldovan and Latvian banks between 2010 and 2014. The arrests underscore how Kremlin-backed operatives continue to exploit Moldova’s southern regions, including Gagauzia and Russian-controlled Transnistria, as staging grounds for political sabotage.
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Russia’s goal is clear: destabilize Moldova, stall its European future, and entrench its influence in Eastern Europe. But this week’s raids show that the Kremlin’s operatives are being hunted down and exposed, and that Moldova is no longer standing alone against Moscow’s aggression.
The results of subverted elections can have effects for generations and kill millions. This is high treason and should be a capital offense.
I do agree that the punishment should be severe and the perpetrator should lose acess to setting foot in the country again, but the problem with capital punishment is that you can be wrong about who is the perpetrator and kill innocents. It has happened many times and it’s the reason why most civilized countries have eliminated it.
and deployed Telegram bots to both transfer cash and flood Moldovan social media with pro-Russian propaganda. Police recovered large sums of cash in multiple currencies, Russian bank cards, laptops, and even a luxury Tesla vehicle, tying the scheme to Moscow’s hybrid warfare playbook.
That could never happen here, right?
We’re safe, right?
Oh, but that’s the US, over here in Germany we’re much smarter.
/s
We’re not.
A good portion of you are, just like America and other countries.They’ve spent billions of dollars on us to convince us that they’re the good guys. That’s what’s interesting, these evil assholes could still have been fabulously wealthy, but all of their citizens also not doing too bad if they spent that money on raising all boats.
Now the rest of Europe should follow suit
Go Moldova! Other europen countries need to take some notes here!
We in the rest of Europe really need to be backing Moldova. They’re next in line if Russia gets its way with Ukraine and the Moldovans seem to know it
This is the declaration of war
This is just one further operation in a war declared decades ago. Most people just missed both the declaration and the war itself due to it’s hybrid nature.
We really do need to improve the nuance on our interpretation of violence (or maybe harm is better?) so that this aggression falls into scope.
Maybe it already is and our only options are sanctions (likely already applied?) and outright counter-strikes (which would trigger a hot war)?
