A former police chief from the Republic of Moldova, who lives in London, is recruiting a paramilitary group to overthrow the government of President Maia Sandu in order to install pro-Kremlin power in Chisinau, according to a report obtained by the British Foreign Office and obtained by The Times.

The allegations were confirmed by Maia Sandu’s government, which said the UK had not yet approved a request for the extradition of the officer made by Moldovan authorities.

He presented the situation on his page Twitter Maxim Tucker, author of an article in The Times, which also quoted the chairman of the British Parliament’s Defense Committee, Tobias Ellwood, as saying it was “unclear” why the UK had not extradited the former Moldovan police chief.

“For years, London has had a reputation as a haven for Eastern European oligarchs who often have close ties to Putin,” Ellwood lamented.

“After that, it finally changed [începerea războiului din] Ukraine, but I met with the president of Moldova 3 times in the presence of a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the issue of this extradition request was raised,” he said.

“We cannot limit ourselves to Ukraine if we are serious about supporting democracy in Europe,” he added.

Pro-Russian separatists from the Republic of Moldova asked for “help” from Moscow

The Times article comes after pro-Russian separatists in Transnistria called on Moscow earlier this week to expand its so-called “peacekeeping” mission in the region by sending more troops. This move was immediately condemned by the government of the Republic of Moldova.

This new escalation in tensions between Chisinau, Tiraspol and Moscow comes after President Maia Sandu announced for the first time on February 13 that Chisinau authorities are aware of Russia’s violent plan, which includes attacks and hostage-taking, undermining the Republic. Moldova.

Immediately after these statements, the pro-Russian party of fugitive oligarch Ilan Sora, who is believed to be central to Moscow’s efforts to destabilize the Republic of Moldova, began organizing protests in Chisinau, busing people to anti-government demonstrations. a pro-Western country.

A little more than a week after Maia Sandu’s statement, Russian President Vladimir Putin canceled the 2012 decree recognizing the “sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova” in the Transnistrian issue.

The Russian press wrote at the time that Putin canceled the decree “to ensure the national interests of the Russian Federation in connection with profound changes taking place in international relations.”

Later, an investigation published by Yahoo News in mid-March with the participation of several European media showed that the plan to destabilize Chisinau was developed directly in the Kremlin, by the so-called “Presidential Office for Cross-Border Cooperation”. the same department of Putin’s presidential administration that developed the strategy for the annexation of Belarus.

Russia is preparing a paramilitary organization to overthrow the government of Moldova

A government spokesman in Chisinau told The Times that the former police chief is a key player in Russia’s efforts to topple the pro-Western government.

“He used his past connections to recruit ex-policemen for a paramilitary group that ‘protects’ fake demonstrations against the government,” Moldovan parliamentarian Radu Marjan also told The Times.

“These demonstrations are coordinated with Moscow. We know this from the reports of our special services, American special services and how Russian propaganda presents them as a popular opposition party,” he added.

The British newspaper also notes that the former police chief runs a Moldovan political party from London as a cover and that he recently published photos of himself attending the coronation of King Charles III and the Eurovision Song Contest.

A British Foreign Office document says he is at the center of a complex network of Russian proxy actors run by the FSB and Wagner’s mercenary group.

The report claims that the emergence of his political party and security force, called the People’s Shield, is reminiscent of the so-called Crimean Self-Defense Forces, which arose before Russia’s illegal annexation of the peninsula in 2014.

“Armed with modern means of communication and uniforms used by law enforcement agencies, and wearing official identification marks, the group of approximately 130 members bears the hallmarks of a new paramilitary group,” the document further states.

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