Russia’s Matryoshka disinfo network targets Moldova, bots accuse President Maia Sandu of corruption and repression

Aside from accusations of corruption and pressure on political opponents, the videos featuring “university professors” include standard Kremlin propaganda narratives. One claims that President Sandu is a member of the LGBTQ community and that under her leadership, “non-traditional values” in Moldova will inevitably displace “traditional” ones. Another video alleges that Sandu plans to follow “Ukraine’s example” by seeking control over the Orthodox Church — specifically, by transferring the Chișinău Diocese from the Russian Orthodox Church to its Romanian counterpart. According to the video’s creators, this would be a step toward the full unification of Moldova with Romania.

A total of ten videos have been released so far — four disguised as content from major media outlets and six as faux academic lectures — along with one fake magazine cover. According to the Bot Blocker project, only one previous fake video about Moldova linked to the Matryoshka network had been identified. That video, circulated in June 2024 in Romanian, was styled as a public service announcement supposedly shown in online cinemas. It promoted tolerance toward people with disabilities and LGBTQ individuals, with the intended effect of frightening viewers and turning them against “European” values.

Despite the Kremlin’s disinformation efforts, Sandu won the presidential election last November with 55.35% in the second round of voting. But that’s not the end of the story. Parliamentary elections are scheduled for September 2025, and Alexandru Musteață, head of Moldova’s Information and Security Service (SIS), has already warned that Russia may attempt to interfere in them.

“Their strategy was, is, and will continue in 2025 to be the infiltration of the political environment by individuals and entities affiliated with or covertly backed by the Russian Federation, with the aim of gaining control over Parliament and, consequently, other state institutions. This strategy relies on political and electoral corruption, disinformation and manipulation, as well as street actions and disorder,” Musteață said at a government meeting on Dec. 12 last year.

The Insider has obtained links to the original tweets, as well as evidence provided by the Bot Blocker project confirming that the accounts that posted the content are part of the Matryoshka network. The Insider does not publish direct links to disinformation content in order to prevent its further spread.