On 22 September Moldovan President Maia Sandu delivered the most serious address of her presidency, warning Moldovans that their sovereignty, independence and future were in “grave and immediate danger.” Her remarks followed sweeping raids by the police and intelligence services that resulted in dozens of arrests across the country. Authorities alleged that those detained were part of networks funded and directed by Russia to destabilize Moldova ahead of the parliamentary election scheduled for 28 September.

Sandu accused the Kremlin of spending hundreds of millions of dollars to foment unrest, buy influence and prepare violent provocations. She insisted that Moscow acted not only through its own operatives but also via local collaborators, whom she described as “traitors to their homeland” motivated only by money. Rejecting Russia’s claim that Moldova is too small to resist, she declared that the country is a nation and a home its citizens will defend.

Officials said the raids targeted groups that had been organizing demonstrations, stockpiling funds and preparing acts of violence. Some of those arrested were alleged to have received training abroad, including in Serbia and Bosnia, before returning to Moldova to carry out operations. Security agencies said they were working to dismantle financing channels that moved money through shell companies and cryptocurrency. The government framed the arrests as pre-emptive, designed to foil provocations intended to cast doubt on the election and trigger chaos in the capital, Chisinau.

The rhetoric was deliberate. By casting the operation as a confrontation with Moscow itself, Sandu aimed both to mobilize loyal citizens and to alert international partners that Moldova is being tested as part of Russia’s broader campaign to destabilize Europe’s eastern periphery.