Romanian presidential candidate Nicolae Ciuca said that a much closer than expected referendum in favor of European Union membership in Moldova was the result of a well-organized Russian disinformation campaign.
The former prime minister warned that Romania which holds presidential elections on Nov. 24 was Moscow’s next target.
“The close result of the vote in the referendum in Moldova (Eds: on Sunday) shows the power of manipulation of Russian propaganda,” he said.
Mr. Ciuca congratulated Moldovans for “ voting in favor of the European road! Even if it is a narrow victory, this vote is a big step forward for a better future of the Republic of Moldova,” he said in a Facebook post.
Moldova had been expected to easily approve a motion to enshrine EU membership in its constitution, but the vote was much closer than expected_ with the ‘yes’ camp winning by a margin of 12,500 votes.
Without mentioning Russia by name,pro-Western President Maia Sandu took aim at “criminal groups, working together with foreign forces” had deployed “tens of millions of euros, lies and propaganda” in a bid to keep Moldova “trapped in uncertainty and instability.”
She said Moldovan officials had “clear evidence” of “fraud on an unprecedented scale” designed to undermine the democratic process. “We are waiting for the final results, and we will respond with firm decisions.”
In his message, Ciucă warned “Russia is continuing its hybrid aggression against Europe.”
“The extremely close result of the referendum vote, however, shows the manipulative force of Russian propaganda. It is clear that Russia continues its hybrid aggression against Europe and especially on Eastern Europe,” he said,
He said “the elections in Romania are the next target of Moscow’s propaganda,” and called on Romanians to “reject such manipulations, reject the messages of division, the anti-European and anti-NATO messages.”
“Romanians must continue to vote for the Euro-Atlantic future, for a liberal democracy and for economic development according to the Western model,” he said.
As vote counting got underway in Chisinau, the “No” vote had a comfortable lead in the country of 2.6 million. It was only when the votes of Moldovans living in Western Europe were counted that the outcome change, avoiding a major upset.
Preliminary data show the ‘Yes’ camp won by 12,500 votes.
Mrs Sandu won about 42% of the votes in the presidential ballot which was also held Sunday and faces a runoff with a pro-Kremlin candidate.
Moldova EU referendum hangs by a thread, ‘Yes’ vote has razor-thin lead
