Romania battles foreign meddling in presidential elections

The Romanian authorities have informed their allies about an attempt at foreign interference in the presidential elections. According to the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, declassified documents from the National Defense Supreme Council indicate that during the first round of elections, there was external intervention by a "state actor."

"We have informed our allies about this external interference attempt and will take all necessary measures to protect democracy, national security, and sovereignty," the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Wednesday.

The Romanian authorities have decided to declassify and publish reports containing significant information regarding malicious external operations. These reports point to illegal financing, the strengthening of digital campaigns, and large-scale cyberattacks targeting the presidential elections.

The declassified reports, the ministry stresses, show "unprecedented and significant foreign interference directed against democratic institutions and processes." "These actions are part of an ongoing and persistent attempt to undermine Romania's firm commitment to Euro-Atlantic values and our membership in the EU and NATO," the statement said.

The day before, the National Defense Supreme Council revealed reports from the Romanian intelligence services and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They indicate that during the first round of presidential elections, organized cyberattacks on electoral systems occurred, involving an external "state actor."

It was assessed that Romania is targeted with "aggressive Russian hybrid attacks, including cyberattacks, information leaks, and sabotage," stated the Foreign Intelligence Service.

The Romanian Intelligence Service also detected an aggressive promotional campaign conducted bypassing national legislation in the electoral area, as well as the use of certain social media platform algorithms to accelerate the rise in popularity of Calin Georgescu. This campaign was coordinated using alternative communication channels, such as Telegram and Discord, to "relay" messages on the TikTok platform.

It was also revealed that a businessman from Brasov, Bogdan Peschir, spent one million euros (approximately 1.1 million dollars) on financing Georgescu's campaign on TikTok. The network of accounts promoting Georgescu initially included 25,000 accounts on TikTok, which became very active two weeks before the elections. Moreover, over 100 influencers with eight million followers were manipulated to promote Calin Georgescu.