“Hybrid threats do not stop at borders”, warned the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, at the Paris Peace Forum on Wednesday. “What happened in Moldova in the last three elections, or in Romania last year, can happen anywhere: in national elections or in the next European Parliament elections”, stated the head of state, emphasizing the danger of disinformation campaigns launched by Russia, reports IPN.
According to Maia Sandu, the “furious campaign launched by the Kremlin” in the Republic of Moldova has tried to discredit the leadership and divide the citizens, spreading the idea that, if Moldova will stand with Ukraine and Europe, it will end up sharing Ukraine’s fate.
The head of state mentioned that Russia’s informational manipulation seeks to erode the support for Europe’s security and defense. The aim is to convince citizens that investing in protection is a challenge and that strength means escalation.
“While Russia operates with a war economy and wages a hybrid war against several countries, it wants European democracies to be politically, economically and mentally disarmed”, emphasized Maia Sandu.
In the Republic of Moldova, manipulation persists despite actions to strengthen the legal framework, through which the Audiovisual Council has obtained extensive sanctioning tools, including the suspension of channels that spread misinformation or glorified war, stated the president. Unlike television, the digital sphere remains largely unregulated and social media platforms have become vast spaces of manipulation.
“During the parliamentary elections of 2025, networks controlled by Russia used Telegram, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram to bombard Moldovan users with fabricated news, deep fakes, and coordinated propaganda. Troll farms operating within Moldova generated tens of millions of views. The BBC infiltrated one of these networks, composed of about a hundred fake TikTok accounts”, said Maia Sandu.
Warning that hybrid threats do not stop at the Schengen Area border, Maia Sandu said that Europe must grow and that “EU enlargement is not an act of charity, but of security.” “To defend democracy, Europe must act as a whole – large, strong and united, to resist hostile powers that seek to divide us”, concluded the President of the Republic of Moldova.
The Peace Forum, now in its eighth edition, was launched in 2018 at the initiative of President Emmanuel Macron, and annually brings together leaders from countries and experts from around the world to discuss solutions to major global challenges – from peace and security, to sustainable development and democratic governance. In the current edition, the President of the Republic of Moldova delivered a speech in the session dedicated to information integrity and the role of independent media.
