Moldovan president says Putin is not interested in serious talks and pressure must be increased

Moldovan President Maia Sandu has said Europe and Ukraine's other partners should increase economic pressure on Russia to force it to sit down at the negotiating table to end the war.

Source: Newsmaker, a Moldovan news outlet, citing Sandu at the GLOBSEC forum in Prague, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Sandu pointed out that the Russian authorities are not currently interested in serious peace talks, saying that support for Ukraine must continue and that economic pressure on Russia should be increased.

She added that she does not believe the Kremlin is willing to end the war or engage in serious negotiations, and said Europe and the wider world will have to step up pressure on Russia for such talks to take place.

The Moldovan president also believes that the only way to bring peace back to the region is to continue supporting Ukraine.

Sandu also said European countries must be prepared to counter Russia's hybrid warfare. Among the threats, she listed cyberattacks, information manipulation, illegal financing of political parties and election campaigns, as well as funding for actions aimed at destabilisation.

Russia is using a wide range of tools and Europe has to take this seriously and prepare, she added.

Background:

• On 15 May, Putin signed a decree simplifying the procedure for granting Russian citizenship to residents of unrecognised Transnistria.
• Sandu said the decree could be used to conscript people from Transnistria for the war against Ukraine.

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