Euroreporter: Stoianoglo's presidential campaign would be coordinated and financed by the Kremlin. PSRM rejects accusations as "fabricated"
The campaign of Alexandr Stoianoglo, the former general prosecutor of the Republic of Moldova and presidential candidate, would be coordinated and secretly financed by the Kremlin, reads an article published by Euroreporter. The revelations, based on audio recordings published on lubyankleaks.org, involve the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova (PSRM) and show an alleged collaboration between a member of this party and a former FSB agent. In response, the PSRM says that the recordings are "fabricated" and considers the accusations an attempt to discredit orchestrated by the government and Maia Sandu's team.
The audio recordings suggest that socialist Adrian Albu, a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Security and Defense, was in direct contact with Yuri Gudilin, a Russian political strategist and US-sanctioned former FSB agent. Talks reportedly captured in April 2024 reveal plans to promote Stoianoglo's campaign. Gudilin allegedly gave instructions to maintain discretion about meetings between the PSRM and Russian representatives. Gudilin also stresses the need to "cleanse the image" of Ilan Shor, a pro-Russian politician with a controversial reputation in Europe, through tactics that would include discrediting pro-European opponents. In addition, according to the investigation, Albu and other members of the PSRM allegedly met top Russian officials, including Nikolai Patrushev, adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The purpose of these meetings would have been to establish strategic directions for the election campaign and to strengthen Russian support.
The PSRM categorically rejected these accusations, claiming that "the so-called recordings are fabricated" and are an example of "black PR" used by PAS and Maia Sandu's team to negatively influence the election campaign. In their official statement, the Socialists condemn these methods and warn that the opponents' campaign tactics could "divide society" and spread social hatred.
The "Teleradio Moldova" Broadcaster requested information from the Police about the alleged recordings but has not yet received a response. Contacted for a comment, the spokesperson for the governing Action and Solidarity Party, Adriana Vlas, has not replied to the request yet.
