Over the past few months, a lot of people have been asking me exactly how much of what happened during the Romanian 1989 Revolution was orchestrated by the United States (or conversely, the Soviet Union). There’s a really persistent conspiracy theory that the Revolution was largely stage-managed by the USA, and I want to know if that’s true. The short answer for now is: I … Continue reading Veti mai trai pana la 9 ianuarie!
Hmm…. this all sounds very familiar. First, the staid New York Times piece: These days, however, it is a different photograph that is rallying support for Moscow’s allies in Europe’s Poorest Country™. It shows a United States assistant secretary of state, Victoria J. Nuland, standing shoulder-to-shoulder in Washington with Vlad Plahotniuc, Moldova’s most-feared figure, a nominally pro-Western tycoon with a reputation so toxic that even … Continue reading Nuland Endorses Moldova’s Most Hated Politician
The other day, after briefly mentioning how Kroll’s second report is now a month overdue (with no information about when it will ever be released), I remembered that somewhere in my archives I had a copy of the original Kroll report from April 2015. It’s a rather long and “boring” document but it is written in English so I sat down and read it thoroughly. … Continue reading The Theft of the Century
It’s no secret that I have almost zero respect for Romanian journalists and bloggers. But I am starting to get a serious writer crush on Moldovan journalist Vitalie Calugareanu, who has been writing (literally!) the only decent analysis I’ve seen anywhere in the Romanian language on what’s going on in the Republic of Moldova. Because his latest article is so good, I decided to translate … Continue reading En Garde, IMF!
Temperatures are warming up and the protesters aren’t going away: Moldova’s opposition has prevented reelection of Chairman of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) Mihai Poalelungi whom it accuses of corruption. [The Protesters] chanted “Down With the Mafia!” and other anti-government slogans. I seriously had to laugh reading that sentence. “Down with the Mafia” is now officially an anti-goverment slogan in Moldova. Priceless! Meanwhile the … Continue reading Moldova, Moldova, Sent Money Right Over!
All Things Romania 