On Sunday, a congress of Moldovan politicians and public figures supporting Moldova's accession to the EAEU was held in Moscow, at which an announcement was made about the creation a joint electoral bloc dubbed "Pobeda" (Victory). The bloc includes the parties Sor, Sansa, Victorie, Revival, and Power of Moldovan Unity and Accord.
"Yes, it is true. Delegates of the Pobeda congress are being detained at the airport, in the arrival area. They are under pressure. Representatives of the competent authorities do not really explain anything, referring to a failure in the registration program," Tauber said.
Some passengers detained at the airport felt sick and required medical attention, Sor party leader Ilan Shor said later in the day.
"The authorities have been holding our fellow citizens at the Chisinau airport for several hours without any grounds. [Moldovan] President Maia Sandu believes they are 'guilty' of the most important crime — many passengers of this flight were at the congress of the political bloc Pobeda in Moscow," Shor said on Telegram.
He also accused the Moldovan president of trying to put pressure on those who have a different point of view and said that "Sandu violates the constitutional rights of Moldovan citizens" and commits "complete lawlessness."
"This should not go unpunished," he added.
Later in the day, Irina Lozovan from the Revival Party told journalists that airport border guards had started allowing the detained delegates to pass, but without explaining the reasons for their detention.
"It is unclear for what reasons people were not allowed out of the airport and were kept there for about three hours. What is clear is that the authorities continue to bully their citizens," she added.
Meanwhile, the leader of the Revival Party, Natalia Parasca, was detained and taken from the airport to the office of the Moldovan Security and Intelligence Service for an interrogation, the party told Sputnik.
The top Moldovan court last week gave the green light for the referendum on Moldova's EU accession bid. Moldova applied for EU membership in March 2022 and was granted EU candidate status in June 2022. In December 2023, EU leaders decided to open accession negotiations.