Political pundit Vladimir Socor, of the Jamestown Foundation of the U.S., considers the temporary partnership between the Party of Socialists and the Bloc ACUM should be kept for four years as Moldova needs stability, while the system built by Vlad Plahotniuc should be dismantled. In an interview for RFE/RL’s Moldovan Service, the expert said Moldova needs stability, not turbulence or artificial over-politicization of the population, IPN reports. 

“The government and the population have other concerns than permanently having elections and being in states of replacement of the government or parliament. Stability is needed and the system of Mister Plahotniuc should be destroyed,” stated Vladimir Socor.

Asked what he thinks about an eventual meeting of the Premier with Russian leaders and if this could affect somehow the pro-Western image of Maia Sandu, Vladimir Socor said this will do no harm. The relations between Moldova and Russia should be normalized. Normalization means restoration of the economic relations for Moldova’s benefit and this reopening should not become the political monopoly of the PSRM or Igor Dodon. Normalization means continuation of the approaches to obtain the pullout of the Russian troops from the Transnistrian region, not stopping of such approaches.

As to the reports that the leaders of some of the parties left Moldova, the analyst said the leader of the Democratic Party Vlad Plahotniuc threatened to come back and to even take revenge. “That’s why it is even more important to dismantle the system built by Mister Plahotniuc as of 2009, 2010. The Constitutional Court, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the judicial system, financial flows, private finances of Mister Plahotniuc, media outlets, the holding of Mister Plahotniuc, armies of bloggers and trolls maintained by Mister Plahotniuc should all be removed by the new power before Mister Plahotniuc could try and take revenge,” he stated.

As to the relations that the U.S. and the EU want to further have with Moldova, Vladimir Socor said the EU and the U.S. should realize that a cycle that lasted for yen years is over in Moldova. This started in 2009 together with the coming to power of an allegedly pro-European government. A part of that government was indeed pro-European, but that part was beaten in the domestic political struggle by the grouping of Vlad Plahotniuc and his network of influence. Moldova has now the chance to really continue the modernization and Europeanization policy, without geopolitical components.