Moldovan President Maia Sandu has decided to deprive Alexander Kalinin, the leader of the pro-Russian Party of Regions and the Congress of Moldovan Diasporas in Russia. The reason for this was recruitment to the armed forces of a foreign state, which contradicts the law on Moldovan citizenship. The relevant decree appeared on the website of the head of the Moldovan state on Tuesday, UNN reports.
Alexander Kalinin became the head of the Party of Regions in 2016 and collected signatures in support of his candidacy for the 2020 presidential election, but later refused to do so.
Kalinin has shown open support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which can be seen in his photos and videos on social media, where he appears in a military uniform with the Z symbol, which is banned in Moldova due to its use by the Russian army in the war on the territory of Ukraine.
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Kalinin also organizes actions in support of Russian soldiers, collecting shoes and warm clothes for them and distributing them in the occupied settlements of Luhansk region.
The European Union and Canada have put Kalinin on sanctions lists for attempts to destabilize the situation in Moldova.