Perhaps each of the parties was hoping that one of the others would have such a vested interest in continuing the transit that they would agree to lose face and make concessions, but in the end everyone was prepared to suffer rather than give anything away to the enemy.
As Moldovans prepare to go to the polls on Oct. 20, it looks like another round of the familiar geopolitical standoff between Russia and the West over the countries in Moscow’s former empire and sphere of influence.
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by Maksim Samorukov, a fellow at Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, and by Paula Erizanu, a prominent writer and journalist from Chisinau who writes for Financial Times, The Guardian and The New York Times, to discuss the upcoming presidential election in Moldova and what leverage Moscow still has to interfere in Moldova’s path toward the EU.
The issue of relations with Russia and the European Union is firmly back at the heart of electoral politics in Moldova.
Moscow’s approach to Moldova is to play for time and keep the country in geopolitical limbo by stoking internal divisions, stalling reforms, and fueling disenchantment with the pro-European course.
Amid the war in Ukraine, almost every politician in Moldova wants to avoid being seen as strongly pro-Russian. But public support for Russia remains significant.
Former prosecutor general Alexandr Stoianoglo already has the support of Moldova’s most popular opposition politician in his bid to become president.
