The Russian publication The Insider and the media Jurnal TV from Moldova recorded a large number of antennas and satellite dishes on the roof of the Russian embassy in Chisinau. Presumably, they are used for surveillance.
Journalists also learned that classified liaison officers of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU) and the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service are operating on the roof of the Russian embassy in Chisinau. These people are closely related to the hackers who hacked the emails of Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron and Hillary Clinton.
Pavlo Yakunin on the roof of the embassy.
One of them is Pavel Yakunin. He was born in Ryazan and graduated from the Cherepovets Military Institute of Radio Electronics before serving in GRU. At the embassy, he is responsible for secret communication channels with the headquarters of GRU in Moscow.
He climbed onto the roof of the embassy in Chisinau before the Eurosummit, the hacker attack on the websites of the Moldovan government and president, and the elections in Gagauzia.
According to The Insiderʼs source in the border service of Moldova, the country was visited by Sergei Sarapulov, Sergei Korolev, Igor Naumenko, Aleksandr Mironov, Konstantin Valdai, Aleksandr Koshurenko and Aleksandr Chikurov. All these people serve in the radio intelligence of GRU, and some of them are specialists in wiretapping and hacking computer networks.
In addition to "listeners" and hackers from military intelligence, 23 officers from the technical department of foreign intelligence of the Russian Federation were spotted on the roof of the embassy.
Moldovan journalists from Jurnal TV noticed that as soon as another batch of visitors arrives from Moscow, some activities with transmission antennas immediately begin on the roof. A total of 28 plates, pins and other devices were counted on the roofs of the embassy itself and the neighboring building where diplomats and technical personnel live.
With the help of parabolic antennas, you can establish a satellite connection, a microwave relay line or strengthen the signal of a wireless Internet router. In addition, such an antenna can determine the location of ships, planes and guided missiles and allows you to listen to telephone conversations.
Now the liaison officers and "listeners" in Chisinau are commanded by Aleksandr Vasinovych. He often appears on the roof of the embassy and gives instructions. Two more GRU officers serve under Vasinovich: Riga native Vitaliy Renev and the above-mentioned Pavel Yakunin, seen on the roof before the Eurosummit.
A source in the border service of Moldova reported that the wives of some Russian intelligence officers suspiciously often fly to and from Moscow. Flash drives and hard drives were often noticed in their hand luggage.
"We think that these women are used as couriers to transport too ʼheavyʼ files. They enjoy diplomatic immunity, and unfortunately we do not have the right to inspect them," say Moldovan border guards.
- On February 20, 2023, in an interview with Die Welt, Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia plans to change the government in Moldova, and he warned the countryʼs president Maya Sandu about this. Moldova and Russia do not share a border, so Zelensky suggested that the Russians could use the airport in Chisinau to transfer their troops. Prime Minister of Moldova Dorin Rechan confirmed Zelenskyʼs statement.
- The United States believes that people connected to Russian intelligence are planning to organize protests in Moldova to overthrow the government and install a pro-Russian government.
- In May, the EU imposed sanctions against people involved in the destabilization of Moldova.