Ranking Member Shaheen, Senator Tillis Send Bipartisan Letters to Meta, Alphabet Ahead of Moldovan Parliamentary Elections

WASHINGTON - Last week, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Thom Tillis (R-NC), who has helped lead engagement in the Moldova-North Carolina State Partnership Program, sent letters to Meta and Alphabet respectively urging them to devote sufficient resources to preventing Russian-backed disinformation and political financing from impacting Moldova's election integrity.

"While we must be agnostic to the results of Moldova's elections, we cannot be indifferent to foreign powers' efforts to put their thumb on the scale for parties or candidates," wrote the Senators in their letter to Alphabet. "Where that interference endeavors to utilize U.S. based platforms, we must be proactive in our approach."

"We urge you to do everything in your power to ensure that [sanctioned oligarch Ilan Shor] cannot continue to use your platforms to spread propaganda," wrote the Senators in their letter to Meta.

The Senators cited warnings from Moldovan President Maia Sandu and reputable civil society groups, including WatchDog.MD, in expressing their concerns to the companies, as well as recognition by the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom of the grave threat posed by Russian actors' disinformation efforts to Moldova's democracy.

Full text of the letters to Meta and Alphabet are available HERE and HERE and provided below.

Dear Mr. Zuckerberg,

We write to express our appreciation that Meta representatives met with the Moldovan Central Election Commission (CEC) in June ahead of the country's upcoming September 28 parliamentary elections. We urge you to remain engaged with the CEC and devote sufficient resources to prevent Russian-backed disinformation and political financing from accessing your platforms during the pre-election period in Moldova.

President Maia Sandu has already warned that "the Russian Federation wants to control the Republic of Moldova" and has a plan to use online platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, to spread anti-democratic messages. Independent non-governmental organizations concur with her assessment, with premier civil society group WatchDog.MD identifying 146 anonymous Facebook pages affiliated with U.S.-sanctioned oligarch Ilan Shor, which he reportedly uses to purchase political advertisements. While those pages appear to be the most problematic, WatchDog.MD assesses that more than 2,000 Facebook pages are Kremlin backed. Unfortunately, in a small country, this type of campaign can have an outsized impact. Engagement during the pre-election period is critical to ensure that elections are not just free, but also fair.

Russia's attempt at interference in Moldova's 2024 presidential election and referendum on European Union membership previewed the Kremlin tactics, which should inform our efforts ahead of the upcoming elections in September. Despite being sanctioned, Ilan Shor spent approximately $546,000 on Facebook ads between 2022 and 2024. We urge you to do everything in your power to ensure that he cannot continue to use your platforms to spread propaganda.

While we must be agnostic to the results of Moldova's elections, we cannot be indifferent to foreign powers' efforts to put their thumb on the scale for parties or candidates. Moldova is on the cusp of European Union membership. Ultimately, whether to join the European Union will be a decision for the Moldovan people - but we must do our part to ensure that it is indeed for them to decide.

The United States, Canada and the United Kingdom have all recognized the grave threat that Russian actors' disinformation efforts pose to Moldovan democracy. We urge Meta to use this moment to help ensure Moldova's elections remain free and fair.

Dear Mr. Pichai,

We write to express our appreciation that Google representatives took the time to meet with the Moldovan Central Election Commission (CEC) in June of this year ahead of the country's upcoming September 28 parliamentary elections. We urge you to remain engaged with the CEC and devote sufficient resources toward ensuring that Russian-backed disinformation and political financing cannot prosper during the pre-election period in Moldova.

President Maia Sandu has already warned that "the Russian Federation wants to control the Republic of Moldova" and has a plan to use online platforms to spread anti-democratic messages. Independent non-governmental organizations concur with her assessment, with premier civil society group WatchDog.MD assessing that Russian actors have already launched "massive YouTube ad campaigns." As individuals who have run for office ourselves, we know that campaigns are not decided on Election Day. Engagement during the pre-election period is critical to ensure that elections are not just free, but also fair. Russia's attempt at interference in Moldova's 2024 presidential election and EU referendum gave the international community a preview into Kremlin tactics. We must not be caught off guard this year.

While we must be agnostic to the results of Moldova's elections, we cannot be indifferent to foreign powers' efforts to put their thumb on the scale for parties or candidates. Where that interference endeavors to utilize U.S. based platforms, we must be proactive in our approach. Moldova is at a critical moment in its history - it is on the cusp of European Union membership. Ultimately, whether to join the European Union will be a decision for the Moldovan people - but we must do our part to ensure that it is indeed for them to decide.

The United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom have all recognized the grave threat that Russian actors' disinformation efforts pose to Moldovan democracy. We urge Google to use this moment to help ensure that Moldova's elections remain free and fair.

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