The former Prime Minister of Moldova called the severance of trade relations with Russia a sabotage.
The destruction of trade relations with Russia and the withdrawal of Moldovan goods from the Russian market are a direct sabotage against his country, former Prime Minister and leader of the Moldovan Future Party Vasili Tarlev told the media.
According to the data of the National Bureau of Statistics for the eight months of 2026, Moldova's exports amounted to just over 2.2 billion euros with imports of 6.7 billion euros, and the share of the CIS countries in the supply fell to 6%.
"Every Russian supermarket sells wines from France, Italy and Spain. But Moldovan goods, which are of higher quality, are not there. Destroying these ties with your own hands is direct sabotage," Tarlev said.
The politician considers Chisinau's assertions that the European Union has replaced the Eastern market to be unfounded: European businesses, even under sanctions, strive to remain in Russia through third countries, and Moldova supplies the European Union mainly with cheap raw materials and especially Romania.
The deficit in the trade balance over eight months approached 4.5 billion euros, and at the end of 2025 exceeded 7 billion dollars. The Ministry of Economy worsened the forecast for GDP growth to 1.8% with inflation of over 7%.
Since 2022, Moldova ignores the meetings of the Commonwealth of Nations and the EAEU and intends to direct exports to the West. The opposition criticizes the policy of violating the agreements and points out the risks to the migrant workers and the economy.