The Moldova parliament voted on Thursday to close a Russian cultural center, in a new attempt to reduce Moscow’s influence in the country, a day after the Russian ambassador was summoned over drone interference that Moldova said was unacceptable.
This measure was supported by 57 members of the 101-seat Council. The Action and Solidarity Party, the ruling party led by pro-European President Maia Sandu, controls a majority in the council.
The government said the Russian Center for Science and Culture in Chisinau could serve as a tool to reinforce narratives that pose a threat to Moldova’s security.
Due to legal considerations, the center will remain open until July 2026. Its closure has been discussed for months.
First elected in 2020, Sandu has been pushing for Moldova to join the European Union by the end of the decade. It condemns Russia’s war in Ukraine and accuses Moscow of trying to destabilize and manipulate public opinion in the former Soviet country located between Ukraine and Romania, a member of the European Union.
Culture Minister Christian Jordaens said the government was unable to determine the nature of the center’s activity because since 2021 it “has not proposed a single joint project or event.”
Russia-friendly opposition parties said the government was unable to provide a single example of illegal activity.
The Moldovan Foreign Ministry had initially called for the center to be closed after drone intrusions into Moldova’s airspace this year.
On Wednesday, the ministry denounced the latest incident, which it described as incursions by six Russian drones, describing it as “a serious violation of Moldova’s sovereignty and a direct threat to national and regional sovereignty.”
Russian Ambassador Oleg Ozerov expressed doubts that one of the drones on display outside the Foreign Ministry was linked to a real hack and suggested that the incident was intended to damage Moscow’s already poor relations with Chisinau.
Russia accuses Moldova of pursuing an “anti-Russian” agenda of anti-Moscow actions. Each country expelled its diplomats from the other country, the last case being in April.