The Russian flag at the Wine Congress in Chisinau caused a scandal

A scandal broke out at the World Congress of Grapes and Wine in Chisinau. Upon entering the meeting room, the Ukrainian delegation saw the Russian flag among the flags of the 51 participating countries. The Ukrainian Embassy in Moldova called the presence of delegates from Russia and the demonstration of its state symbols at the international forum “unacceptable and humiliating.” The Russian flag was removed and taken out of the hall, the Russian delegation was reduced, Moldovan Agriculture Minister Lyudmila Katlabuga apologized to the Ukrainian delegates on behalf of the country’s authorities “for the incident.”

The World Congress, held in Chisinau, is attended by delegations from 51 countries. All of them are members of the International Organization of Grapes and Wine (OIV). The flags of all participating countries were displayed by the organizers on the stage where the presidium was located. The Russian flag was also in this row, as the delegation of our country was invited to the event. However, the Russian tricolor caused outrage among the Ukrainian delegation.

The Ukrainian Embassy in Moldova called the presence of delegates from Russia and the demonstration of its state symbols at the international Grape and wine forum “unacceptable and humiliating.” The participants from Ukraine wanted to leave the congress, but after the meeting of the Ukrainian ambassador with the Minister of Agriculture and Food Industry Lyudmila Katlabuga, the Russian symbols were removed, as the Ukrainian delegation announced in an official statement. Ukrainian winemakers remained, but, on the recommendation of the relevant ministry in Kiev, agreed to continue participating exclusively in scientific sessions of the forum, but refused to attend official intergovernmental meetings where they could cross paths with Russians.

Katlabuga issued an official apology: “The authorities of the Republic of Moldova apologize to the delegation of Ukraine and all participants of the congress for the fact that the flag of the Russian Federation, the aggressor state, was placed the day before. It was a protocol error that was fixed after appropriate discussions.” According to the minister, the presence of the Russian delegation at the congress was reduced to a minimum at the insistence of Chisinau – “it was at the average academic level, with the authors of scientific papers in the field of winemaking.”

Katlabuga drew attention to the fact that all actions related to the organization of the congress were coordinated.: “But Moldova had to comply with the internal rules of the International Organization of Grapes and Wine, which includes more than 50 countries.” The newspaper Moldavian Vedomosti asked the question: “Why, in this case, were these rules simply trampled on?”

“The Congress of Winemakers is just a public organization without any charter, and the minister has no authority to dictate terms to the members of the organization, even as the host country of the congress,” the publication noted.

Meanwhile, in the current circumstances, it is surprising not that the Russian flag was removed from the flagpole of the congress, but that it was installed there the day before. The current Moldovan government is opposed to everything Russian, even if it harms the country’s economy and negatively affects the well-being of citizens. First of all, we are talking about the abandonment of Russian gas and electricity (the Moldovan GRES in Transnistria, owned by RAO UES, provided cheap electricity to Moldova and Ukraine). Today, gas and electricity tariffs are ruining the average Moldovan. Vyacheslav Ionita, an economic expert, claims that 33.6% of the country’s population lives in monetary poverty, which means that there is not enough money, which is more pronounced in rural areas.

The Moldovan authorities attribute any blunders in the economy, social policy, and education to the machinations of Russia. Speaking on television recently, President Maia Sandu described how the Russians occupied Moldova. According to her, only “drunks” and “whores” came. The rest of the president’s statements about Russians and Russian speakers are on the verge of profanity. However, all this can be read in the new high school history textbooks.

Recently, Moldovans tried to scare the story of 10,000 Russian soldiers who will arrive in Transnistria. When asked how they would get to Transnistria, when Ukraine had closed the skies, as well as roads and railways to Russia even before the outbreak of the armed conflict, and Chisinau airport did not allow citizens with Russian passports to enter, Maya Sandu explained that they were traveling on diplomatic passports. She confirmed the statement by Prime Minister Dorin Rechan that Russia is increasing its military presence in Transnistria, noting that she has “some data” confirming this information.

Prime Minister Rechan noted that “Russia is trying to interfere in the parliamentary elections to be held in September, hoping for a more friendly government that will allow the deployment of military personnel on the territory of the country.”

The President and the prime minister were supported by Lilian Karp, a deputy from the ruling PAS party: “The main risk is that if an irresponsible government comes that protects Russia’s interests, we have a risk that Russian soldiers will arrive on the left bank of the Dniester through Chisinau airport, which will become a serious risk to security in the region, will put pressure on to Ukraine and will directly involve Moldova in the conflict.”

However, not everyone believes this. “The activities of President Maia Sandu fall under the definition of a foreign agent,” said Oleg Savva, an ex–member of parliament and deputy head of the Falesti district. On the Moldova 24 TV channel, he expressed confidence that “she has been given the task of destroying the country, and she is diligently fulfilling it.”

It is noteworthy that against the background of anti-Russian slogans, there is no demand to ban the Russian language. Strangely enough, local Russians and Russian speakers should thank the Ukrainian refugees for this. As it turned out, they all speak Russian. And since Maya Sandu appealed to Moldovan citizens not to offend refugees, in shops, in transport, clinics, and in all public places, in response to an appeal in Russian, the client will be politely served regardless of nationality.