Reporting From Chisinau…
The Romanian government has announced it will make major energy infrastructure investments into Moldova, the tiny Romanian-speaking country sandwiched along the border with Ukraine, essentially buying the gas distribution network inside the country. Romania also announced it will be making investments in Moldovan electricity production capability.
Romania Refuses To Allow Russian Diplomats Overflight To Moldova
The issue is critical because Russia has used the delivery of gas as a weapon in Moldova, and also as a way to skim money from the Moldovan economy and create instability in the poor nation. These investments will essentially remove Gazprom, the Russian natural gas behemoth, from the Moldovan equation.
The development was announced yesterday in Bucharest and was readily accepted in Chisinau, the capital of Moldova.
Local Moldovan journalists report this announcement took a great deal of courage from Moldova as the tiny, impoverished country does not really have the resources to stand up to the Russian bear, but they are doing it anyway. “Moldova deserves Western support. Russia may react violently as elections are approaching here and they may want to further destabilize the country,” said one senior source within the Moldovan government.
Is Russia Losing Its Hold On Moldova?
Since the horrific banking scandal in 2014, where 20% of the Moldovan banking system was stolen, Moldova has nationalized Russian shares in multiple banks, enacted an anti-Russian propaganda law, and changed its electoral system to prevent pro-Russian political groups from seizing power.
