Day: October 4, 2025

The recent election in Moldova may prove to be a historic event. The reformist Party of Action (PAS), led by President Maia Sandu, has consolidated its power as it readies the country for E.U. membership. Although Moldova is home to just 2.4 million people, the vote is a clear blow to Russian designs in this small but strategic country.

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The Kremlin’s influence has been considerable in Moldova. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia has backed separatist forces in the breakaway Transnistria region, as a foothold to keep up pressure on the central government in Chișinău. Russian influence grew over time to include major penetration of the Moldovan security ministries and key economic sectors. Past presidents have also had close ties to Moscow, including communist Vladimir Voronin and socialist Igor Dodon. The only real antidote to the Russian challenge is sustained, reform-minded political leadership. That is what we are witnessing now.

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The PAS parliamentary win follows Sandu’s presidential victory last year. The result was a surprise as pre-election polls showed the two major Moscow-backed parties—the Patriotic Electoral Bloc (BEP), led by Dodon, and the National Alternative Movement (MAN)—receiving a near majority. 

But PAS won 50.2% of the vote. BEP came in a distant second with 24.17% and MAN 7.96%. The votes of the parties that did not make it into parliament will be divided proportionately, meaning PAS will end up with several seats more than a bare majority of 51.

Sandu’s commitment to reform and the E.U. is rock solid. Her parliamentary majority will allow her to pass the legislation needed to join the bloc, which she would like to achieve this decade. The symbolism of that would be a major blow to Moscow’s imperial project of promoting a “Russian world” that identifies ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers abroad to back the Kremlin’s interests. It would also undermine the substantial Russian control over Transnistria, a development that pro-Moscow columnists are actively discussing on Telegram.

Moscow made considerable efforts to block a PAS win. Chișinău has accused Russian agents of spending €200 million—a staggering 1% of Moldova’s GDP—to buy votes during the presidential election and E.U. referendum last year. Sandu has also accused Russia of spending “hundreds of millions” to subvert the parliamentary election last weekend. Meanwhile, the country’s election commission barred the pro-Russian Heart of Moldova (PRIM) and Moldova Mare (PMM) parties from participating in the vote amid allegations of voter bribery, illegal financing, and money laundering.

Multiple monitoring groups and investigations have likewise pointed to a flood of disinformation campaigns with links to Russia. One such investigation by the Associated Press found fake news sites that “impersonate legitimate Western media and pay ‘engagement farms’ in Africa, while AI bots are deployed to flood comment sections deriding PAS and the E.U.”

BEP leader Dodon did not even wait for the first results to come in before declaring that he won the recent elections, and called for demonstrations outside of parliament. Fortunately, the crowds numbered only in the hundreds.

A crucial reason was that election observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the vote was “competitive and offered voters a clear choice among political alternatives but the process was marred by serious cases of foreign interference, illicit financing, cyber-attacks, and widespread disinformation.” The OSCE preliminary observation was not without criticism of Chișinău for disqualifying PRIM and PMM just before the vote in a way that “limited their right to effective remedy,” but the overall election assessment was positive.

The fate of Moldova now rests with Sandu and PAS. If they can use their fresh mandate to pass and implement the legislation needed to reform the country and join the E.U., the parliamentary election will be seen as a major event in the country’s evolution.

Winning the election was hard, but making the transformational changes Sandu advocates will be far harder.

• Telegram CEO Pavel Durov allocates 11 to 12 hours of sleep to help him generate ideas.
• Durov said he tries to avoid the distraction of mobile phones when he wakes up.
• Despite a career in social networking, Durov said these apps can make you less productive.

Lying awake at night isn’t an issue for the CEO of Telegram — it’s his dream scenario.

Pavel Durov, who cofounded the messaging app, said on Lex Fridman’s podcast Tuesday that he allocates 11 to 12 hours of sleep a night, even if he spends part of it with his mind racing.

He said brilliant ideas have come to him in those 12 hours when he’s trying to sleep.

And when he wakes up, he starts his morning without a phone.

Durov tries to limit his phone usage. Fridman said he spent two weeks with Durov and hadn’t seen him use his phone for social media the way many people do. Durov said phones are a distraction that can prevent people from forming their own ideas.

“My philosophy here is pretty simple,” Durov said. “I want to define what is important in my life. I don’t want other people or companies, all kinds of organizations, telling me what is important today and what I should be thinking about.”

Still, Durov said he understands the importance of staying connected without overdoing it. Durov built his career around apps that encourage smartphone usage. He’s the head of a messaging service and previously cofounded a Russian social networking site.

“I know it’s kind of counterintuitive because I founded one of the largest social networks in the world, after which I founded the second-largest messaging app in the world,” he said in the interview.

Telegram didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Durov has also been outspoken about his other views on technology, including data privacy. The Russian-born entrepreneur said in August that he’d “rather die” than give third parties access to messages on Telegram.

He’s become a symbol of the fight between social media companies and governments. In August 2024, Durov was arrested by French authorities related to allegations that he allowed illegal activity on his platform. He has strongly denied all the charges. Telegram rarely shuts down channels or removes posts from its servers.

Although his job revolves around social connectivity, Durov said that in his own work, he’s found “the more connected and accessible you are, the less productive you are,” he said.