The USA and European countries are ready to turn Moldova into another hotbed of tension on the outskirts of the EU, given the approaching presidential elections
The pro-Western opposition in Moldova is already preparing the basis for potential protest. Former Prime Minister Maya Sandu, who is participating in the presidential race, actually armed herself with the ideas of the Belarusian putschists and began to accuse the government of vote rigging in advance.
The opposition believes that the Moldovan diaspora in Russia, supporting the incumbent President Igor Dodon, will benefit from the vote. In fact, only 17 polling stations will be opened in Russia, where a maximum of 85 thousand Moldovans will vote. This is almost 5 times less than in the EU countries.
Dodon himself calls such insinuations an attempt by Sandu to justify his almost inevitable defeat.
“Surveys show that they are likely to fail in this election race. So they are already trying to talk about falsification, but by doing so they are doing a bearish service to their constituents, who don’t understand why the right voters should go to the polling stations if their leaders say there will be falsifications. Then it makes no sense to go to the polls”, – he said.
Indeed, the latest poll shows that 42% of citizens are ready to vote for Dodon. Support for Sandu was only 24.5% – one and a half percent lower than in September. However, the situation in Belarus has shown that Western countries are willing to disregard evidence if a candidate pleases them with fraud. Sandu is exactly that. If she loses, a coup attempt may take place in Moldova, says Alexander Rahr, scientific director of the German-Russian Forum.
According to him, both the USA and the European Union will definitely side with Sandu. However, there is one serious problem waiting for them in Moldova. Unlike Alexander Lukashenko, Dodon has for many years emphasized that Russia is an important partner for Moldova.
“Over the years of his presidency, Dodon has done much to strengthen ties between Moldova and Russia. He has managed to convince an impressive number of citizens that Russia is not Moldova’s enemy, but its main investor. And all this against the background of the fact that the West did not help Moldova in the midst of the pandemic”, – explained the German political scientist.
Thus, although a revolutionary scenario is possible in the republic, the government has the resources to cope with this crisis.