A Hated Oligarch is Romania’s Last Hope

Moldova is rapidly heading towards the precipice: Moldova’s president on Wednesday rejected a proposal to nominate an influential politician and businessman to become the next prime minister, saying there were doubts about his integrity. But President Nicolae Timofti said there were reasonable suspicions about Plahotniuc’s integrity and said he would not nominate him for the job. He told the pro-European coalition to pick another candidate … Continue reading A Hated Oligarch is Romania’s Last Hope

Moldova Builds Fragile Pro-EU Coalition

From here: The new parliamentary coalition comprises of the Democratic Party (PD) of Marian Lupu and Vlad Plahotniuc, the Liberal Party (PL), as well as 14 MPs that defected from the Communist Party (PCRM), 8 MPs that defected from the Liberal Democratic Party (PLDM), and one independent. Theoretically, this is a 56-strong majority in a 101-seat Parliament; it should be able to appoint a Prime … Continue reading Moldova Builds Fragile Pro-EU Coalition

Moldovan Politics Splinters Yet Again

Even the oligarchs running the country can’t decide which faction to support: “The decline in the financial and banking sector has grown into a political and social crisis, which is threatening the country with catastrophic consequences,” the parliamentarians noted. They believe that in this situation the interests of the country and not those of the political parties should be a priority. The rest here. Continue reading Moldovan Politics Splinters Yet Again

Every Man for Himself, and May the Devil Take the Hindmost

Word Count: 729 Every time a Moldovan tells me how great it would be if the unirea (political union with Romania) would happen, I always ask them the same question. “Why in the world would you want those fucking crooks in charge of your life?” In Romania, just a week after siccing the dirtbag police on a group of unarmed shepherds, the parliament just voted … Continue reading Every Man for Himself, and May the Devil Take the Hindmost

Let Slip the Dogs of Protest

Word Count: 1346 A couple of days ago, Romania made a huge splash across the world as news reports filtered in about the good hitting police of Bucharest taking a break from their usual activities of robbing foreigners to discharge tear gas and deploy riot gear against some unarmed shepherds: More than 1,000 shepherds have broken through police lines into the grounds of Romania’s parliament … Continue reading Let Slip the Dogs of Protest