Moldova suspends pro-Russian party of fugitive oligarch Shor

On Friday, 16 August, a court in Bălți ruled to suspend for three months the activities of the pro-Russian party Chance, which is associated with fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor, who was convicted in Moldova.

Moldovan service of Radio Liberty reports that the court ruling came three months after the Moldovan Ministry of Justice filed a lawsuit against the Chance party demanding that its activities be restricted for six months due to violations in financial documents found by the Central Election Commission.

The violations were found in Chance's financing of the election campaign for the local elections in November 2023. In particular, it was about 71 donors with too low incomes that did not correspond to the donations they made.

The Bălți court partially granted the minister's request and restricted the party's activities for only three months – until mid-November. This means that Chance's activities will be restricted during the presidential elections in Moldova on 20 October.

The restrictions mean that the pro-Russian party is prohibited from using bank accounts and organising public events.

Chance also has to pay court costs of 250 lei (US$55).

Radio Liberty wrote that the pro-Russian Chance party became the first party to be suspended, although this mechanism has been provided for in Moldovan legislation for 17 years.

Chance emerged after the Constitutional Court of Moldova declared another of Shor's political projects, the political party of the same name, unconstitutional and banned its activities due to its ties to Russia.

Meanwhile, in April, parties linked to fugitive Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor created the Victory electoral bloc at an event held in a Moscow hotel.