00:00All right, our coverage continues now with a member of the European Parliament, Michel
00:05Galler.
00:06He is from the center-right European People's Party.
00:08That's the largest political group in the European Parliament, and he is in Moldova
00:13today as well.
00:14It's good to have you, Mr. Galler, on the program.
00:16What's your reaction to the reports of Russian interference in Moldova's election?
00:21Well, I think there is ample evidence thereof.
00:25I mean, I've been the head of the European Parliament's election observation delegation.
00:30Of course, we have not seen money being exchanged in the polling stations, but we have witnessed,
00:37and it's in the public domain, that people like the oligarch, Mr. Schor, has publicly
00:42offered money and asked people to register for that, and a lot of money has been paid
00:48to people.
00:49So that is one aspect of vote-buying.
00:51The other is the permanent interference, in a way, through the social media, which
00:57are far more watched in Moldova than the public media.
01:02And I mean, there was this tendency to say, when you vote for the EU, you vote for the
01:07war.
01:08And indeed, the people are afraid of the war, because it's next door.
01:11They have seen hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians passing by, and the Russian war of aggression
01:17is ongoing.
01:18And so there is a potential to intimidate people and to make them believe that with
01:24the EU, anything like the war would be connected.
01:27Mr. Gödel, I just want to make sure that we're clear on this.
01:30So you're saying that you've seen people being offered money in order for them to vote, the
01:37way...
01:38No.
01:39As I said, no.
01:40But of course, we have not seen that bluntly in the polling stations.
01:44That doesn't happen there.
01:45But it is in the public domain, as I said, that Mr. Schor has offered people to register
01:51and receive their money.
01:53And there have been people interviewed saying, well, poor people, quick money.
01:57They accept some comparable to 25 euros, but do they then cast their vote accordingly?
02:03It's another question.
02:04But there has been this, not the first time, but now very much and very intense.
02:11And with the results in as they are, how reassured are EU lawmakers about this result?
02:18I mean, it is a majority vote, but barely.
02:22Yes, indeed.
02:24And there are only out of the 2,219 polling stations, only four are missing.
02:29And we are currently at 50.47% as we speak.
02:33So that is sufficient, but indeed it is due to this massive intimidation and disinformation
02:41campaign.
02:42Otherwise, I mean, all other candidate countries, the margins are far higher.
02:48And this is something that we have to state.
02:51And there is a lot of work to do.
02:52But we have something to offer to the Moldovans.
02:55Russia has nothing to offer them other than intimidation or even threatening war through
03:01their proxies.
03:02So I'm confident that also for the next round of the presidential elections, the Moldovans
03:08will join all forces and make an informed decision about the future of the country.
03:15What has to happen, in your opinion, before Moldova can begin joining the European Union?
03:23I mean, we have started the negotiations.
03:25I mean, it goes through the entire chapters and it's the screening of what needs to be
03:32done.
03:33We are already there.
03:34We are offering, like President von der Leyen said more than a week ago when she was there,
03:39we are offering 1.5 billion for the reform process, especially in the judiciary, the
03:44police, all the public sector needs to be reformed according to European standards.
03:51And there is a political will from the president, from the current government, and we hope that
03:56that can be sustained.
03:57There is a cooperative spirit.
03:59And I think we have, as I said, we have to offer something for a country like Moldova.
04:04Russia has not.
04:05How likely is it, though, for a country with a breakaway Russian-aligned territory to gain
04:13EU membership?
04:14I mean, if I can play the devil's advocate here, isn't the European Union just asking
04:18for trouble by going forward with Moldova?
04:24I don't see that by any means.
04:26I mean, there is this occupied territory, Transnistria, indeed.
04:31And by the way, the votes that were there cast, and they were cast on this side of the
04:36government-controlled Dniester side of the river, there were 25% vote for Maya Sandoz.
04:42And it's by no means that all the inhabitants of Transnistria would not like to have her.
04:48But the point is, I mean, we have another situation of a divided country where we take
04:55the country as it is internationally recognized in at some point when time is there.
05:00It's we are not talking of tomorrow or in two or three years.
05:04But once it's matured and everybody agrees, then we take the country in and the law is
05:11applied in this sector which the government controls.
05:15We have a Cyprus example where the country is in as a whole, but this part that is occupied
05:21is not part of the EU.
05:25So that is not an obstacle.
05:27Michel Gala, member of the European Parliament.
05:30Mr. Gala, we appreciate you taking the time to talk with us.
05:34Joining us tonight from Moldova.
05:37Bye bye.
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