CHISINAU (Reuters) – Moldova’s prime minister said on Wednesday that Russian agents spent around 200 million euros ($217 million)- nearly 1% of the small pro-European country’s GDP – on efforts to buy votes at its presidential election and EU referendum last year.
The comments came on the same day Britain sanctioned Evrazia, a pro-Russian non-governmental organisation, saying it was responsible for attempting to rig the referendum in Moldova and destabilise its democracy.
Moldova has repeatedly accused Moscow of meddling in its affairs to keep the former Soviet country in its orbit and stymie its bid to join the European Union by 2030.
Moscow has denied the allegations and criticises the government in Chisinau.
“The Kremlin’s agents launched a mass vote-buying campaign, spending about 200 million euros – almost 1% of Moldova’s GDP – in order to destabilise our country,” the official, Dorin Recean, told a briefing in Chisinau.
Moldovan law enforcement authorities have said the efforts to bribe voters were led by pro-Russian fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor and his supporters. Shor denies any wrongdoing.
Britain’s foreign office said the sanctioned Evrazia network was operated by Shor.
Moldova is scheduled to hold a parliamentary election this autumn that will be a test of the popularity of the pro-EU government’s course.
($1 = 0.9215 euros)
(Reporting by Alexander Tanas; writing by Yuliia Dysa; editing by Alexandra Hudson)
