Russia launches campaign in Moldova to discredit Sandu's victory - ISW

Ivashkiv Olena — Tuesday, 5 November 2024, 05:25

Maia Sandu, Moldova's President. Photo: Getty Images

Russian and pro-Kremlin figures launched an information campaign on 4 November to discredit the victory of incumbent Moldovan President Maia Sandu in the presidential election.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Details: The Moldovan Central Election Commission (CEC) confirmed on 4 November that Sandu secured 55.35% of the vote, defeating her Kremlin-aligned opponent, Alexandr Stoianoglo. Numerous world leaders extended their congratulations to Sandu on 3-4 November, with international observers largely praising the election process despite Russian attempts to influence the results against Sandu.

Pro-Russian opposition groups and officials sought to undermine Sandu’s victory: the Moldovan Socialist party labelled her "an illegitimate president", pro-Kremlin Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor claimed on Russian state TV Rossiya-24 that the opposition had "evidence" of widespread falsifications favouring Sandu, and pro-Kremlin former Moldovan president Igor Dodon told TASS that Sandu only won due to diaspora votes.

The Russian information space, including Russian milbloggers, echoed these claims, asserting that the election was controlled by "European bureaucrats" and that Moldovans lacked control over the outcome.

ISW previously reported on Russia’s systematic efforts to meddle in the Moldovan election to obstruct Moldova’s EU referendum and Sandu’s victory.

To quote the ISW’s Key Takeaways on 4 November:

Russian and pro-Kremlin actors launched an information operation on 4 November to discredit incumbent Moldovan President Maia Sandu’s victory in the Moldovan presidential elections.
Georgian civil society and opposition resumed peaceful demonstrations on 4 November against the highly contested 26 October Georgian parliamentary elections, calling for continued resistance and further investigations into large-scale voting irregularities.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's (RFE/RL) Sistema project released an investigation on 4 November detailing Russia's initial 2022 demands for Ukraine's total capitulation, further supporting ISW's long-standing assessment that Russia has never been willing to engage in good-faith negotiations with Ukraine on any terms but its own.
Russian drone and missile strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure in summer 2024 reportedly significantly impacted Ukrainian electrical generation capacity compared to March 2024, though it is unclear whether Russia had been able to inflict significant further damage on the Ukrainian energy grid since.
The Kremlin-awarded founder and director of the prominent Rybar Telegram channel and social media project attempted to falsely portray himself as a non-Kremlin actor in the Western media and confirmed the Kremlin’s efforts to establish "media schools" abroad.
Russian authorities arrested Rosgvardia's Deputy Head of Logistics Major General Mirza Mirzaev for bribery on 3 November.
Russian forces advanced near Novy Put, Kursk Oblast.
Ukrainian forces advanced in Kharkiv Oblast, while Russian forces advanced on the Kupiansk, Kreminna, Pokrovsk, Kurakhove, and Vuhledar fronts.
The Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) continues efforts to form a cadre of loyal military journalists to control the pro-war Russian information space and centralise control over Russia’s war coverage.

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