Moldova diplomats. In defiance of Dodon: Moldova demands the expulsion of Russian diplomats. Peacekeepers on duty
Prime Minister of Moldova Pavel Filip, commenting on the declaration of five Russian diplomats as persona non grata, said that he wants Russia to treat the republic more respectfully. During the briefing, he emphasized that Chisinau values relations with Moscow and has been making a lot of efforts in recent years to achieve this.
“But we also want to be treated with respect, despite the fact that we are a small country. We are members of the CIS, where there are rules that all members of the commonwealth must comply with,” TASS quotes the Moldovan prime minister.
On May 29, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova declared several Russian diplomats persona non grata. The country's President Igor Dodon, who criticized this decision, said that the Russian Ambassador to Moldova Farit Mukhametshin was required that five employees of the Russian mission leave the territory of Moldova within 72 hours.
At the same time, Philip expressed regret that Moldova “never received a response to the note addressed to the Russian Embassy in Chisinau,” in which the country’s authorities expressed “outrage at the excessive control of Moldovan officials on the Russian border.”
At the same time, the Prime Minister of Moldova emphasized that these are not the only problems that Chisinau faces in matters of bilateral relations. According to him, there are also difficulties associated with the export of Moldovan goods to Russian territory and migration issues. At the same time, Moldova, according to the head of the country’s government, will strive to restore good relations with Moscow in the listed areas.
The decision of the Moldovan Foreign Ministry was criticized by the country's President Igor Dodon, who had previously repeatedly stated the need to build more constructive relations with Russia.
“The government has made an outrageous gesture towards our strategic partner, the Russian Federation.
I want to state that I am deeply outraged by this unfriendly step on the part of representatives of Moldovan diplomacy and condemn it in the most categorical way,” President Dodon wrote on his Facebook.
The decision of the Moldovan authorities caused a negative reaction from the Russian Foreign Ministry. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin promised that Moscow will give a tough response to the decision to expel Russian diplomats from Moldova. However, Karasin has not yet named specific formats for such a response.
“This is a gross provocation, a blow to those forces in Moldova led by President Igor Dodon, who really advocate the normalization and improvement of bilateral relations with Russia,” said the deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Guest of honor of Moscow
It should be noted that this is not the first diplomatic scandal in relations between the two countries in 2017. On March 1, the Moldovan government unexpectedly recalled the republic’s ambassador to Russia, Dmitry Braghis. Then the Moldavian Foreign Ministry did not talk about the reasons for the decision.
Igor Dodon was elected to the position of president at the end of last year. In the elections, he represented the Socialist Party, which opposes the liberal democratic forces that are in power in the country. It is noteworthy that these were the first direct popular elections in Moldova, and they were won by a candidate who was initially called “pro-Russian.” During the election campaign, he repeatedly stated the need to normalize relations with Moscow.
During the six months that Dodon led the country, he made official visits to Moscow several times, and at the Victory Parade on May 9, 2017, he was present at the podium on Red Square as an honored guest.
At the same time, Moldova is a parliamentary republic, where the powers of the president are significantly limited compared to the rights of parliament and government. The election of Dodon as president of the country shows a serious split within Moldovan society and the country’s leadership, Vladimir Evseev, deputy director of the Institute of CIS Countries, told Gazeta.Ru.
“On the one hand, Dodon is committed to interacting with Russia and deepening cooperation. On the other hand, there is a parliament that opposes the president and has actually deprived him of many rights. During Dodon’s January visit to Moscow, Russian authorities showed that they were ready to expand contacts with him.
This could probably irritate his political rivals,” the expert added.
At the end of last week, Russian diplomats in Estonia also came under pressure, where the authorities announced the expulsion from the country of two employees of the Russian consulate in Narva. Notes with an order to leave Estonia were handed to Consul General Dmitry Kazennov and Consul Andrei Surgaev. The Russian Foreign Ministry also regarded the actions of the Estonian authorities as an unfriendly act.
Five Russian diplomats have been declared persona non grata by the Moldovan government. Anna Samson, press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic, told reporters about this. She did not name any names. The corresponding note has already been sent to the diplomatic mission of the Russian Federation in Moldova. Russian diplomats are required to leave the country within 72 hours.
The Russian Ambassador to Moldova Farit Mukhametshin confirmed that the relevant document has been received and is now being studied. “We won’t comment on anything for now,” he said.
Moldovan President Igor Dodon said that the government “committed an outrageous act against the Russian Embassy in the republic.”
“I would like to state that I am deeply outraged by this unfriendly step on the part of representatives of Moldovan diplomacy and condemn it in the most categorical manner. I understand that the Eurounionists are irritated by the president’s successes achieved in recent months and have decided to engage in direct provocations, which carry the risk of a significant deterioration in Moldovan-Russian relations. I also understand that this was most likely done at the request of the West, maybe even from overseas, on the part of those who are concerned that a constructive and effective dialogue has finally been achieved between the presidency and the Kremlin,” said the head of the Moldovan state . According to him, the government’s decision to get involved in the geopolitical games of Brussels and Washington, as well as the games of NATO military structures in this region, is very dangerous.
“I am sure that they do not understand what price our country will have to pay and what a difficult and risky situation they can put our country and our people in. They took this rude step, which will not remain without negative consequences,” Dodon described the actions of the executive branch.
Chairman of the Russian Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Konstantin Kosachev called the decision of the Moldovan government “a clearly unfounded and clearly unfriendly step” and suggested that this step is related to the confrontation between the president and the government. “The details remain to be sorted out, but it looks very much like an ongoing struggle between the presidential and government branches of government,” Kosachev said.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin promised that Moscow would respond adequately to the expulsion of Russian diplomats from Moldova. “Naturally, this is very bad news for Russian-Moldovan relations, this is well understood by those structures that thought through and planned this unfriendly action,” he commented on the sanctions of the Moldovan government against five Russian diplomats. “In any case, we consider this as a direct provocation against the course towards improving bilateral relations that the President of Moldova, Igor Dodon, has recently pursued.”
Sob. corr. FSK
Russian diplomatic representatives must leave Moldova within 24 hours. This was stated by the press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova Anna Samson, reports TASS. The corresponding note was handed over to the Russian Embassy today.
Ambassador Farit Mukhametshin confirmed this information, which concerns five Russian diplomats. He did not name their names or comment on this decision of the Moldovan Foreign Ministry.
Farit Mukhametshin: “The document is under study. We can’t comment on anything at this time.”
However, it is known that among the diplomats who are expelled from the country is the assistant military attaché of the Russian Embassy in Moldova, Alexander Grudin, Interfax reports. In March of this year, Moldova’s special services publicly accused him of recruiting and receiving secret information from ex-member of the country’s parliament, Yuri Bolboceanu. Bolboceanu himself was arrested on March 17. He is accused of treason and espionage. He faces 12 to 20 years in prison.
Over the past few days, this is the second expulsion of Russian diplomats from former Soviet republics. Russian diplomats Dmitry Kazennov and Andrey Surgaev until the end of May.
Meanwhile, Moldovan President Igor Dodon said that the government’s decision to declare Russian diplomats persona non grata is a direct provocation, RIA Novosti reports.
Igor Dodon: “I understand that the Eurounionists are irritated by the president’s successes achieved in recent months and have decided to engage in direct provocations, which carry the risk of a significant deterioration in Moldovan-Russian relations.”
Dodon warned the government that the Cabinet of Ministers had decided to get involved in the “geopolitical games” of Brussels and Washington, and the “games” of NATO military structures are very dangerous.
Igor Dodon: “I am sure that they do not understand what price our country will have to pay and what a difficult and risky situation they can put our country and our people in. They took this rude step, which will not remain without negative consequences.”
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, also commented on the decision to expel diplomats.
Maria Zakharova: “Today the Russian Embassy in Chisinau received a note from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Moldova declaring several Russian diplomats “persona non grata”. Today, statements by the President of Moldova followed condemning these, in his words, “outrageous actions.”
The situation is paradoxical, but indicative; it is obvious that it has nothing to do with the work of Russian diplomats, but demonstrates the development of the situation in Moldova.”
She understood the reasons for the foreign policy demarche of Chisinau.
Without names and reasons
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of Moldova on the evening of May 29 sent a note to the Russian Embassy with a demand for five diplomats. “We have received the relevant document and are studying it. We won’t comment on anything for now,” said the Russian Ambassador to Moldova. The Prime Minister of Moldova said that Russian diplomats should be expelled from the republic, since the authorities received some information from the special services. “That's all I can say at this point. I cannot provide all the motives that were provided by the intelligence services,” Philip noted.
Not only the reasons were not specified, but also the names of the expelled diplomats. According to media reports, among them is the assistant military attache of the Russian embassy in the republic, Alexander Grudin. In March, Moldovan counterintelligence said that he maintained contacts with former member of the republic’s parliament, Iurie Bolboceanu, during an investigation into espionage for Russia.
The trip in January was the first visit to Moscow by a Moldovan leader in nine years. During his second visit, Dodon brought Moldovan wine to his Russian colleague, and soon 20 types of Moldovan wines were supplied to Russia. The head of the supervisory agency admitted that most Moldovan wineries can supply products to the Russian market. Dodon also managed to achieve an amnesty for guest workers who violated immigration laws in Russia. From March 1, for 20 days, those who were in the Russian Federation illegally could legalize their stay by contacting local migration control offices. It is known that 250 thousand Moldovan labor migrants could take advantage of the opportunity to legalize their stay on Russian territory; For another 17.5 thousand citizens of Moldova, the already introduced ban on entry into the Russian Federation can be lifted.
It is clear that all this has an extremely positive impact on the country’s economy, but the pro-Western Moldovan elite is putting up serious resistance to Dodon. The powers of the head of state are limited, the country is a parliamentary republic, and the influence of pro-Western liberals in the legislative body is great. On May 18, the country's Liberal Party initiated the collection of signatures for the impeachment of the country's President Igor Dodon. The party chairman explained that he considers Dodon the main threat to the republic, which, with his help, risks falling again under the influence of Russia.
Referendum of discord
In Moscow, many drew attention to the domestic political aspect of the scandalous decision. The Deputy Head of the Russian Foreign Ministry has a tough answer. The foreign policy department will think about the forms and parameters in the near future. “This is a gross provocation, a blow to those forces in Moldova led by President Igor Dodon, who really advocate the normalization and improvement of bilateral relations with Russia,” Karasin said.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry called Chisinau's actions outrageous. “The situation is paradoxical, but indicative: it is obvious that it has nothing to do with the work of Russian diplomats, but demonstrates the development of the situation in Moldova,” Zakharova emphasized.
According to political scientists, behind this is the “real leadership” of the republic, which is trying to prove to the West its anti-Russian position
Five diplomats from the Russian Embassy in Moldova have been declared persona non grata. They are ordered to leave the country within 24 hours. Russian Ambassador to Moldova Farit Mukhametshin confirmed this information. He did not name the names of the diplomats and did not comment on the decision of the Moldovan Foreign Ministry, Interfax reports. According to the agency, among the expelled diplomats is Alexander Grudin, assistant military attaché of the Russian Embassy in the Republic of Moldova. In March, Moldovan intelligence services publicly accused him of recruiting and receiving secret information from former member of the Moldovan Parliament Iurie Bolboceanu. What could be behind the expulsion of diplomats?
expert at the International Institute for Humanitarian and Political Studies“It seems to me that the Moldovan government and the real Moldovan leadership, led by Vladimir Plahotniuc, continue to show that they are the main enemy of Russia in Moldova and the main opponent of Russia expanding its influence at the expense of Moldova. This is precisely the “message” that Plahotniuc and the General Party constantly send to the United States, to Europe, the collective West, and this is what they want to sell as their main achievement, in order to gain, on the one hand, legitimacy, on the other — external financing, and thirdly, support for the 2018 parliamentary elections. This tactic is well known and has been going on for some time. I think that such a public scandal will not hurt Plahotniuc, who is constantly reproached for being insincere, for constantly collaborating with the pro-Russian President Dodon, and in general, his pro-Western line does not seem to be real, but is aimed at ensuring that -get it. Here he is showing off the goods and saying that he is sincere, that he really takes an active anti-Russian position and is now waiting for confirmation of this from the West.”
Another event preceding the expulsion of diplomats is recalled by Moldovan political scientist Bogdan Tirdea:
Bogdan Tsyrdea Moldovan political scientist“Literally a few weeks ago, a very large diplomatic scandal broke out in Moldova, when the prime minister himself, the speaker of the republic’s parliament and a couple of other senior officials from the government came to the Russian ambassador and expressed their indignation that some Moldovan officials were allegedly stopped at the border with the Russian Federation , and that the Russian FSB allegedly made requests to Interpol 15 times about the same person, it seems to us that they were talking about Mr. Plahotniuc. This is where all this reaction of Plahotniuc and the ruling coalition comes from.”
This is the second expulsion of Russian diplomats from former Soviet republics in recent times. On May 26, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Narva Dmitry Kazennov and Consul Andrei Surgaev were ordered to leave Estonia.
