Weekly Roundup: Moldova's top stories of the last 2 weeks
April 1, 2024
Welcome back to Moldova Matters! Last week we took a break from the roundup as I was on vacation and covered the most important story in a stand alone article about Transnistria. Today we’re playing catchup with a roundup of all the other important stories of the last 2 weeks.
Moscow Terror Attack Fallout
Fallout continues from the March 22nd terrorist attack on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Moscow. The attack, which killed 144 people and injured 551 more has been claimed by ISIS-K and was foreshadowed by public and private warnings of potential terror attacks in Moscow by the US government. In spite of this, the Kremlin is seeking to pin the blame for the attack on Ukraine as well as the US and UK. Four of the primary suspects in the attack appeared in Russian court last week showing clear signs of torture. Videos of this torture, including a man cutting a suspects ear off and forcing it into his mouth were posted on Telegram.
One Moldovan citizen from the Transnistria region was killed in the attack.
The Moldovan Parliament observed a moment of silence for the victims of the attack. Speaker Grosu introduced this saying:
“A terrorist attack took place in Moscow on March 22, killing more than 140 people and injuring over 200 people. According to preliminary data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, among the victims there is also a citizen from the left bank of the Dniester. We strongly condemn the terrorist attack in Moscow and express our condolences to all the families of the victims. Colleagues, I ask you to honor the memory of the victims with a minute of silence,”
International Affairs
Here’s a rapid fire roundup of the other key international affairs stories of the week:
Ukraine appoints a new ambassador to Moldova. President Zelenskyy announced a shakeup of officials and advisors last week, dismissing multiple people including Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council. Danilov had been in this post since 2019 and served as a prominent member in the Ukrainian war effort. Following his dismissal, Zelenskyy announced that Danilov would now become the Ambassador to Moldova replacing Marko Shevchenko who was recalled. Ukraine has portrayed this as a standard replacement of an ambassador whose term was ending.
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Analysis: Former Ambassador Shevchenko has served in Moldova since 2020 and his 4 year term was set to end this year. At the same time, it is notable that he was replaced abruptly and with such a high profile figure. Politico has reported that Danilov was dismissed following insulting comments he made about a Chinese envoy and the Chinese peace plan on television. In his remarks he seems to mock the Chinese Envoy Li Hui’s last name, which in Russian sounds like an expletive. In this context Danilov’s appointment to Moldova may be a sort of “soft landing” after he was fired from his more senior position. Recall, former Ukrainian Commander in Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi as assigned as ambassador to the UK following his dismissal in February. We’ll be following the appointment of Danilov and cover what effect (if any) it has on Moldovan-Ukrainian relations.
Russia steps up long range strikes in Ukraine. Over the last 2 weeks Russia has unleashed almost daily barrages of missile and drone attacks against Ukraine. They have targeted critical infrastructure and cause widespread blackouts in regions across Ukraine. These attacks have put stress on the Moldovan electric grid as well which is interconnected with the Odesa region. President Sandu made comments condemning the attacks saying “…Ukraine must be provided with everything necessary so that it can resist invasion and protect peace in Europe.”
Russia expelled a Moldovan diplomat from the embassy in Moscow. The move was made in a diplomatic tit-for-tat following Moldova expelling a Russian diplomat over the illegal opening of Russian polling stations in Transnistria.
Transnistria and Moldovan Security
Here’s a rapid fire roundup of the main stories of the week:
The Minister of Internal Affairs announced plans to restore bomb shelters around the country. The Minister explained that last year they did an inventory of existing shelters around the country finding some well equipped and in good condition, but most in dire need of repairs and restocking. The inspection showed 198 civil defense shelters in the country which have a collective capacity of 62,000 people. Most shelters were build between 1960 and 1980 and the Ministry estimates that “significant investment” will be needed to update them.
Ukraine puts Transnistrian “foreign minister” Vitaly Ignatiev on their wanted list. No direct reason was given, but Ignatiev was summoned to appear before the SBU back in January for questioning. He did not go. Ignatiev is a Ukrainian and Russian citizen who was born in Odesa. The Transnistrian “minister” is known as one of the Kremlin’s most loyal figures in the region and has previously been suspected of being an asset or member of the FSB.
Transnistria targets Romanian language schools. The region’s “authorities” announced that they will be increasing the price of utilities for schools in the region that teach the Romanian language. In most cases, prices for electricity, water, gas, sewage, etc will double. The Ministry of Education promised to subsidize these costs for the schools and accused Transnistria of interfering with education including the free movement of students and teachers. This long running struggle was highlighted in a Journo Birds article last week.
Moldova’s former head of the border police criminally charged. Rosian Vasiloi has been charged with criminal negligence in last summer’s shooting at the Chisinau airport. Additionally, the widow of airport security officer Igor Ciofu announced that she is suing the airport for compensation and moral damages following her husband’s death.
The Reintegration Bureau has warned about new attacks and provocations in Transnistria. The bureau reaffirmed the position that the helicopter explosion of 2 weeks ago was staged and stated that similar actions will be planned in the future in order to frighten and intimidate. Transnistrian “officials” have angrily rejected the idea that the helicopter attack was faked and stated that Chisinau is not taking terror threats to Transnistria seriously. The bureau stated:
“In the coming time, the Russian Federation is planning even more similar actions in Transnistria and the Security Zone. In the absence of the possibility of a military attack on Moldova, such actions are aimed at creating panic and mistrust in society, weakening the economy,”
The intimidation campaign is working.
Japanese company Fujikura announced that they will be closing their factory in Comrat. The company, which makes wire harnesses for the automotive industry, will continue operating its factory in Chisinau. Natalya Bezhan, Director of Invest Moldova, explained the reason as follows:
“The fact is that Fujikura is significantly dependent on a contract with the automobile company Volkswagen, which decided to transfer the production of parts for its cars from Moldova to a NATO country due to, in their opinion, increased risks and problems with logistics. At the same time, the Moldovan Fujikura plant has never missed delivery deadlines, despite the war in the region. However, the contract between Fujikura and Volkswagen expired and could not be renewed,”
President Sandu also commented on the economic stress caused by Russian disinformation and provocations in Transnistria saying:
“Unfortunately, the war in our neighborhood does not add to our attractiveness due to the threats emanating from Moscow and lies about some kind of danger. Any news, especially in the international press, damages the image of a safe country and makes it difficult to attract investors. Every time we have the opportunity, we present all the advantages of the country to attract more investment. War is a big obstacle to significantly increasing investment,”
Moldovan officials have repeatedly highlighted that Russia’s hybrid war against the country is partly designed to create a perception of instability and insecurity in order to economically weaken Moldova.
Political News
Here’s a rapid fire roundup of the key political stories of the week:
The Central Election Commission (CEC) published a list of active political parties that can take place in by-elections on May 19th - the Chance Party is included. Previously the Shor controlled Chance Party was removed from local elections 2 days before voting by the Commission for Emergency Situations. Now that the state of emergency has ended it appears that the Chance party is legal again.
Local outlets TV Chanel 5 and radio station Maestro FM have their license suspended. The Council for the Promotion of Investment Projects of National Significance was empowered by legislation following the state of emergency to require approval of all foreign “investments significant for national security.” The council stated that the beneficial owners of these outlets are suspected of being "involved in activities affecting state security." Channel 5 called this suspension a "flagrant violation of democratic norms: freedom of expression, editorial independence and freedom of creativity." They also noted that no one had sent them information about any specific violations of the law or what the cause of the suspension was. Government Spokesman Daniel Voda stated that the owners of these companies are affiliated with Ilan Shor and Vladimir Plahotniuc.
The Constitutional Court (CC) recognized as constitutional the holding of a referendum and election on the same day. They rejected an appeal by the Communists and Socialists seeking to decouple the votes. The CC justified their decision citing local precedent, international best practices and recommendations from the Venice Commission.
The Socialist Party unveils a new messaging campaign. The party will promotion the campaign over the next few months with the key message "our national interest must come first." The introduction of the campaign previews the Socialist’s likely election message - Moldova first, neutrality, a balanced foreign policy between the EU, Russia and China, and the traditional family.
Igor Dodon floats consensus opposition presidential candidate. The former president suggested that all opposition parties might rally behind ousted general prosecutor Alexandru Stoianoglo as a common candidate. Dodon stated that Stoianoglo is not part of any political party and therefore could be a common candidate. This seems unlikely, in part because Stoianoglo is facing multiple criminal charges and is far from a popular public figure. Further, the Socialist Party itself participated in ousting him from his position last year stating that he was a creature of Plahotniuc. Dodon stressed that no intra-party talks were ongoing at this time.
The former Republican Stadium will be sold to the US Embassy for approximately 15 million euros. The stadium, which has been abandoned since 2007 and is currently overgrown and home to packs of stray dogs, will be the site of a newly constructed US Embassy building. Conditions of the sale include the maintenance and rehabilitation of the existing arched entryways and the creation of a park and green space around the Embassy. Final negotiations and approvals will continue over the following months.
Justice Reform
Justice reform efforts faced another potential scandal this week as reporting from anticoruptie.md surfaced past issues with Herman von Hebel, international expert and leader of the Pre-Vetting Commission. The investigation resurfaced reporting about von Hebel’s time working as the Registrar of the International Criminal Court (ICC) between 2013 and 2018. At that time he oversaw administrative functions of the court and implemented a reform program called “ReVision” which resulted in large scale dismissals of employees and forcing people to re-interview for their lost positions. Elements of this process were criticized as arbitrary and non-transparent resulting in multiple lawsuits which cost the ICC 760,000 euros in settlement payments and court fees. Additionally, severance packages for those dismissed totaled over 5 million euros.
The New York Times reported on the turmoil at the ICC in 2019 essentially highlighting how much of the dispute centered on the pay of judges and other court employees. ICC court judges earn 200,000 euros / year (tax free) and often supplement this income, with some doubling it, by moonlighting on international arbitration cases. This practice is against the court’s rules but they are rarely enforced. Administrative reform, salary questions and more resulted in the ICC spending a lot of time suing itself during the years that von Hebel was Registrar.
Mr. von Hebel stepped down at the end of his term as Registrar and did not face any criminal or civil charges for his reform program. He went on to consult in multiple international justice reforms, many similar to what he is supporting in Moldova.
Speaking about the issues stemming from the ICC reform Mr. von Hebel stated the following to the New York Times:
“If I could collect the knives put in my back over those reforms, I could open a restaurant.”
The Investigation also highlighted issues with von Hebel’s resume, namely that he listed "part-time criminal judge at the Den Bosch Court of Appeal of Netherlands" as a position held from 2020 until present. The Moldova law governing the Pre-Vetting and Vetting Commissions prohibits holding other jobs concurrently.
Mr. von Hebel responded by saying that he does hold a part time position but has only spent 5 days in Dutch court since being appointed to the Pre-Vetting Commission in April 2022. He noted that he is paid for days in court and otherwise not compensated.
Asked if he would consider resigning von Hebel laughed and stated he would not. He stated that he did nothing wrong and simply accumulated many enemies in the process of implementing reforms. Mr. von Hebel also called out the purpose of this information surfacing now saying:
“I see this article not as a question about what happened in court, but as a question about why people in Moldova are interested in what happened in court in The Hague six, eight, nine years ago. I do not perceive this as an attack on me personally, but as an attack on the entire work of the commission, on the process and program of the government of Moldova - ensuring reform of the judicial system,”
In Parliament, Socialist, Communist and Independent (formally Shor) MP’s called for hearings with von Hebel and the Minister of Justice. This motion was defeated with PAS voting overwhelmingly against hearings. Speaker of Parliament Grosu called out the opposition saying:
“Colleagues, it’s clear that you don’t like the results. The most corrupt ones don't pass muster, and that frustrates you. What to do. We understand your frustration. Let the man do his job because he does it well,”
More complicated were statements from PAS MP Olesea Stamate quoted in the investigation in a ways that implied that Moldovan officials did not have information about misconduct from von Hebel when he was appointed but that information came to light later when it was “already too late.” She has since clarified saying that they found no issues with von Hebel’s time at the ICC or in his resume but that after his appointment allegations emerged about his time advising in Albania. Stamate stated that these were investigated and turned out to be false. She says that she was misquoted in the investigative article.
Other Justice and Justice Reform News
Here’s a rapid fire roundup of the other key stories of the week:
Former prosecutor Victoria Furtuna held a press conference to discuss her resignation (we previously wrote about her resignation in a past weekly roundup). Furtuna stated that she was investigating President Sandu’s choice not to appoint Alexei Panis as a judge. She alleges that SIS and CNA officers inserted false information into the candidate’s file in order to force the president not to appoint him. The former prosecutor claimed that she tried to access state secrets (classified information) to investigate this claim but was blocked by SIS and told she was a threat to national security - at which point she resigned. Furtuna went on to attack the whole process of justice reform saying that “a group of foreigners” should not be replacing local prosecutors in the vetting process.
Vetting and pre-vetting are producing different results. Pre-vetting, which concerns officials appointed to the self-governing bodies the Superior Council of Magistrates (SCM) and the Superior Council of Prosecutors (SCP) had a lower pass rate than vetting (concerning ordinary judges and prosecutors). In pre-vetting, candidates for the SCM had a pass rate of 28% and SCP 45%. The overall pass-rate for the vetting process so far is 75%. Experts explained the difference citing multiple differences in the process. Firstly, pre-vetting went first and candidates for vetting were able to learn from the process and better prepare for the types of information being requested about their incomes and properties. Secondly, pre-vetting disqualifies candidates for a single lei of assets or spending that exceeded legal income. Vetting built in more flexibility allowing for discrepancies amounting to 20 averages salaries over a 12 year period. Part of the reason for this flexibility is that the consequences differ. Disqualification from pre-vetting simply means not getting a job. Disqualification from vetting results in dismissal from a person’s post and a ban on holding positions in the justice system for 3 years.
Igor Dodon’s court case slows (again). The former president is on trial in the “kuliok” (plastic bag) case in which he allegedly took a large bribe from Plahotniuc which was captured on video. The judge in the case allowed the former president to hire independent specialists to evaluate the reliability of the video showing him taking the bribe. This evaluation is scheduled to begin in March 2025 due to “long wait times” with the selected specialist. This case was opened in spring 2020 and the trial has been ongoing since 2022.
Economics and Infrastructure
Here’s a rapid fire roundup of the key economics stories of the week:
Moldova reports disappointing GDP numbers for 2023. The National Bureau for Statistics reported that real GDP growth last year was only 0.7%, well below government forecasts of 2.5%. Growth in Q4 was down to only 0.3%. The government forecasts 3.5% growth in 2024.
The National Bank reduced the base interest rate from 4.25% to 3.75%. The bank explained the move saying that inflation has held within the target inflation corridor of 5% ±1.5% for 5 months and is projected to remain steady through 2025. The base rate peaked at 21.5% at the peak of inflation in 2022.
Sunflower oil producer “Floarea Soarelui” suspended operations last week. The factory, which is based in Balti and part of the Transoil Grup of companies, stated that they are unable to buy enough sunflower seeds on the market to maintain operations. Management has claimed that local farmers are refusing to sell for what the company says are market prices and that due to restrictions they are unable to import seeds from Ukraine. Farmers claim that Transoil, the dominant company in sunflower oil production in Moldova, is unfairly trying to dictate prices. Minister of Agriculture Bolea responded by rejecting claims of a local market shortage and proposing to moderate a meeting between farmers and producers to mediate an “economic” solution.
Youtube advertising is back in Moldova. Last week Youtube began showing ads in Moldova for the first time since ads stopped without clear explanation in 2021. At the same time, local creators do not have the ability to monetize their videos and receive compensation from Youtube. The Ministry of Economy stated that the return of ads is currently in a preliminary testing period without local monetization. They stated that they are in contact with Google and will update the public when services fully resume.