The upcoming visit to Chisinau of a trio of European leaders - French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, which is set to happen on August 27, represents a strong message, including to those who are trying to destabilize the Republic of Moldova, Moldovan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mihai Popsoi declared on Tuesday in an interview with the National News Agency AGERPRES.

The Moldovan official was in Bucharest on Tuesday for the Annual Meeting of Romanian Diplomacy.

'This powerful political gesture of sharing the celebration of Independence Day with us will definitely earn the appreciation of the Republic of Moldova citizens and will send a strong message, including to those who are trying to undermine Moldova's stability, whether we are talking about state actors - the Kremlin and the Russian Federation, or non-state actors - various agents of influence of the Russian Federation, including fugitive oligarchs who act as in-betweens, as proxies, in destabilizing the social and political situation in the Republic of Moldova,' the official from Chisinau said.

He stressed that Romania is the main ally, advocate and promoter of the Republic of Moldova's accession to the European Union.

In the interview, Minister Popsoi talks about the hybrid attacks on his country, the stakes of the parliamentary election that will take place in a month in the Republic of Moldova, but also about the hopes pinned to the country's path towards EU integration.

AGERPRES: Mr. Deputy Prime Minister, on September 28 the Republic of Moldova will hold parliamentary elections, considered very important because, practically, Moldova's pro-European orientation depends on them. We, in Romania, had the experience of the presidential election this year, where we saw a rift of the Romanian society, a rift between people. Is there a similar phenomenon in the Republic of Moldova?

Mihai Popsoi: In the democratic space, a certain polarization is inevitable in an electoral period. What is important is what happens after the election and the ability of political leaders and of the society as a whole to overcome these divisions and tensions that inevitably arise in the electoral competition. It is natural that these tensions exist in the Republic of Moldova too, which, the Russian Federation is trying its best to exploit, fuel, and deepen, but with no real success so far. We are working hard to prevent foreign actors from undermining the stability and sovereignty of the Republic of Moldova by driving artificial wedges or fueling existing divisions, because in any society there are certain faults various ill-intentioned actors can exploit. We are confident that this electoral campaign, although it will be intense, will not create dissensions that cannot be overcome and, despite the Russian Federation's attempts to foment divisions, the political culture in the Republic of Moldova and - I want to believe - the wisdom of the political leaders (although I might be too optimistic about that) will act in such a way that these divisions don't deepen any further, that the citizens unite and come closer together, because this is natural in a democratic state, and in a country that wants to be part of the great European family.

AGERPRES: During the presidential campaign, the Republic of Moldova was very quick to detect and pinpoint the source of the hybrid attacks. Now, there is an ongoing dialogue with Romania on this subject. What lesson did the Republic of Moldova learn and pass on to Romania from this experience? Because we had the experience of the annulled election. How was the dialogue on this topic? What does the Republic of Moldova know more than Romania?

Mihai Popsoi: We have an intense dialogue. We've had our own complicated experience for many years now, being exposed to Russian propaganda and malignant interference. We have grown a certain immunity, we have achieved a certain institutional resilience, including at the level of society. It's true that we cannot relax, because the intensity of these interferences is rising, the narratives are changing, the tools are becoming increasingly modern, including through the use of artificial intelligence, through this deepfake content which is extremely complicated to combat and that makes discerning between truth and lies, and propaganda extremely difficult.

Now, we appeal to critical thinking and to the citizens' ability to discern these things, but when it comes to deepfake, it is extremely complicated even for someone properly equipped with critical thinking to do this. But our message each time is that, if a material, a video or any other content seems suspicious in the slightest degree, this suspicion must be checked and analyzed, because if something seems strange, problematic, most of the time there is a problem there.

But the difficulties we encounter span several levels - the interference and the inflow of financial resources from the Russian Federation in order to literally buy the Moldovan citizens, to divert them from the path of European integration and from the legitimate aspiration of the majority of our citizens, as proven in last year's constitutional referendum: the money that used to come in cash through bank transfers, and now as crypto currency, is extremely complicated to track. But we are increasing our capacities in this area too, thanks to the support of international partners. Again, interferences and pressures on the cyber side are extremely common. And here too we are ramping up our capacities in order to be able to fight back.

There is obviously a difficulty in communication and reaction from social media, TikTok, Telegram, Facebook, Google, but here too we turn to international partners, because we are not heard every time, although it seems that there has been some progress from some platforms which, I want to believe, have learned their lesson from the elections in other states, where they were used straightforwardly to undermine democracy and the clear will of citizens through various tricks and gross manipulations. We are working to establish these efficient contacts with these platforms and on this we have the support of our international partners, for which we thank them.

AGERPRES: Are there any classic scenarios of this Russian hybrid attack that have already been deflected and no longer work in the Republic of Moldova? For example, there is this very common scenario: you take a sliver of true information, but 'twist it', some sort of fake news based on something thing...

Mihai Popsoi: I am sorry to say, this is true, because these are often the most effective, the most impactful. Because things that are absolutely counterintuitive and have absolutely nothing to do with reality are easier to combat and take root much harder. In situations where there is a grain of truth there, but it is either hyperbolized, or a large component of propaganda and manipulation is added, these narratives are harder to combat, because the citizens are aware of that tiny particle that is true and this is one of the most effective mechanisms. Sometimes they go over the top and the propagandists end up shooting themselves in the foot when they promote things that are so bizarre that the people somehow figure out these attacks from far away. But it is complicated, because the avalanche, the amount and the intensity of this misinformation is often beyond our capabilities, because our resources are modest, incomparable with Kremlin's, but despite this we work, we increase our institutional resilience, we learn from the experience of partner countries and, in turn, we are more than open to offering our lessons learned to our friends and partners, so that they do not have to go through the difficulties and the ordeal that we are going through.

AGERPRES: This week there will be two days of high-level visits to the Republic of Moldova. The first will be that of three leaders - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, and French President Emmanuel Macron, on August 27, and on August 31, on Romanian Language Day, President Nicusor Dan will come to Moldova. However, the parliamentary election campaign begins on August 29. There is a subtle difference related to the dates on which these leaders visit, that is, Nicusor Dan will come during the parliamentary election campaign, and the European leaders come a little before. Can you comment on this topic?

Mihai Popsoi: There are two national holidays that are highly revered by the citizens of the Republic of Moldova: Independence Day, of course, on August 27, and Romanian Language Day on August 31, both extremely important celebrations, rich in historical significance. The citizens of the Republic of Moldova care a lot about these two landmark holidays and when we have the opportunity to share them with our friends, this is a strong message of solidarity.

As for the visit of President Nicusor Dan, President Sandu is not part of the parliamentary campaign, so this is perfectly OK, there is no reason for suspicion, although the opposition will certainly try to capitalize on this line of attack.

We are grateful to all our friends and partners who support the Republic of Moldova. Romania has done it and is doing it in the most clear, sincere, disinterested, and unconditional as possible manner, something we are extremely grateful for. The recent private visit of President Nicusor Dan was extremely well received in the Republic of Moldova, it was highly publicized and long-awaited, despite its private character. We are known for our proverbial hospitality and whenever our friends and partners decide to come, we welcome them with great affection.

AGERPRES: From the point of view of Chisinau, does the August 27 visit show an evolution of the relationship with the European Union?
Because three EU leaders are coming to Chisinau on August 27, while the Republic of Moldova's EU accession file is underway.

Mihai Popsoi: It is for sure a strong gesture of solidarity and political support and the most unequivocal support possible for the European path of the Republic of Moldova. Now, in the accession process, the Republic of Moldova enjoys the absolute backing of all members of the European Union. Of course, Romania is the main ally, advocate and promoter of the Republic of Moldova's accession, but the other member states and large countries such as Germany, France, Poland too have stood, and stand by our side. And this strong political gesture of sharing the Independence Day celebration with us will certainly earn the appreciation of the Republic of Moldova citizens and will send a strong message, including to those who are trying to undermine Moldova's stability, whether we are talking about state actors - the Kremlin and the Russian Federation, or whether we are talking about non-state actors, various agents of influence of the Russian Federation, including fugitive oligarchs who are used as in-betweens, as proxies, in destabilizing the social and political situation in the Republic of Moldova.

The sanctions imposed by the international community, the European Union and the United States of America are a direct message that impunity will not go unchecked, and this gesture of political solidarity, this visit at such a high level is again a strong message of support for the Republic of Moldova and for its citizens.

AGERPRES: In July, the mayor of Chisinau and two other people from the Republic of Moldova were designated personae non gratae both in Romania and in the Schengen Area. If you wish, would you please comment on this topic or a broader question: does the Republic of Moldova collaborate with EU countries and especially with Romania, with the Schengen countries, on such files, of individuals who are threats to the national security of a country?

Mihai Popsoi: It is a decision of the Romanian authorities. It's complicated for me to comment on these decisions, especially from the position of foreign minister. It is certain that the situation in the Republic of Moldova is a complicated one - the influence of the Russian Federation and the use of various actors to undermine democratic processes and the process of European integration, which, as I said, is the legitimate aspiration of the citizens of the Republic of Moldova, as expressed in the constitutional referendum last year. The diversity of the instruments the Russian Federation resorts to is growing. It is becoming more and more perfidious, if we can say so, trying to adjust to the changing political realities in the Republic of Moldova, but, as I said, this is Romania's decision and comments are probably superfluous.

AGERPRES: Regarding the integration file, the Republic of Moldova is coupled with Ukraine on this path to joining the European Union. There are voices that speak of a possible decoupling of the two countries. How do you comment? Many officials have commented on this. Is this a possibility?

Mihai Popsoi: Coupling or decoupling is entirely the prerogative of the European Union and the member countries. It is their decision. We don't have the capacity to make decisions for anyone. It is certain that we are making an effort to fulfill the commitments we have undertaken, first of all towards our citizens, but also to our partners, something Ukraine is also doing.

For Ukraine, we have enormous gratitude for the sacrifice it makes every day to protect us, including ourselves. That is why we want to walk this path together. The European Union has proven over time to be a successful project, of peace, prosperity, and collaboration. We will be very happy in the near future when we open the first negotiation chapters, so that we can advance continuously in the accession process. In fact, we have made strides at an extremely fast pace in recent years and we are counting on the same pace from now on, because we have lost three decades, we have no more time to lose. And thanks to the tremendous support from the European Union, the member states, and first and foremost from Romania, we hold the firm confidence that we will manage to navigate this complicated, arduous process of negotiating accession, but thanks to this support we are confident that we will navigate it effectively, so that the deadline we have set ourselves - to complete the negotiations by 2028 and to be a fully-fledged member of the European Union by 2030 - becomes an as realistic as possible goal. And we are grateful for the constant support we get from our partners, Romania in the first place.

AGERPRES: In the event that the September 28 election results in a majority anti-EU parliament being installed, do you have a projection as a Chisinau leader of what will happen with the Republic of Moldova and its European course?

Mihai Popsoi: I'm sorry to say, there have been periods in the political history of the Republic of Moldova when a certain progress achieved was reversed - it is reminiscent of our folk dances: one step forward and three steps back. I wouldn't want these dances to reflect in the political space, especially since we have come so far in the last period on several levels, both the one directly related to the EU accession process, as well as the most tangible processes related to energy security, cyber security, information security, the resilience of institutions as a whole, and these achievements can be overturned, not to mention the trouble a pro-Russian government in Chisinau would create for Romania and Ukraine, and the vulnerabilities it generates.

I say this with regret, we have actors in the political space in Chisinau who would be more than happy to play into the Kremlin's hands and undermine everything that regional security means and, what's worse for the citizens of the Republic of Moldova, to undermine their legitimate will to be part of the great European family and to benefit from everything the European Union has to offer as a space of peace, prosperity, a community of almost 500 million people with a very high purchasing power, a space of democracy.

These risks are certainly understood by the citizens of the Republic of Moldova and we will continue to work to inform them about the opportunities represented by these elections and the risks they entail. In any democratic election there is a competition between parties, between leaders, between opinions, between visions for the country, and we are firmly convinced that the vision we propose regarding European integration, regarding our anchoring in the European values is an option our people are willing to share, and those who want to take the Republic of Moldova into the past, to turn Moldova vulnerable, to undermine everything that sovereignty and independence, the rule of law and welfare mean, will not have any chance of success.

AGERPRES: The Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs has expressed on several occasions optimism that negotiation clusters regarding European integration will be opened by the end of the year, at least with the Republic of Moldova. From the signals you have from Brussels, do you hold out the same hopes?

Mihai Popsoi: We are always optimistic in the Republic of Moldova. It's difficult to be pessimistic in the complicated conditions we are going through. We must be optimistic, but, as I was saying, we must put in sustained efforts to be ready, and we are. We have been ready since the beginning of the year. We have made efforts to complete those commitments we undertook. A screening period is now coming to end and, of course, we are ready to open these clusters, just as Ukraine is, and we are confident that our partners in Brussels and in the member countries will find the right solution to continue this extremely important process, both for the Republic of Moldova and for Ukraine, actually for the entire region. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Oana Ghita; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)