Romanian Border Police deny entry to four pro-Russian Moldovan politicians over national security threats

In 2024, Romanian border police refused entry to four pro-Russian politicians from the Republic of Moldova, who had previously been banned from entering the country for five years. The individuals in question are Maxim Moroșan, Alexandru Beșchieru, Veaceslav Lupov, and Igor Tuleanțev. The four were turned back at the border and later challenged these measures in courts in Iași and Bucharest.

During the lawsuits filed by three of them, the Border Police stated that the bans were imposed by the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI) on the grounds of being a „threat to national security and defense” and for „financing, preparing, supporting in any way, or committing acts of terrorism.” Many details in these cases remain classified.

A source close to the situation told G4Media.ro that three of the individuals were banned after allegedly attempting, in March 2024, to travel from Moldova to Bucharest to participate in a protest. At the time, the head of the Moldovan police stated that around 200 Moldovans were expected to take part in this protest, allegedly funded by fugitive pro-Russian businessman Ilan Șor and connected to the AUR party (Alliance for the Union of Romanians, a nationalist party in Romania). AUR representatives vehemently denied this claim.

Currently, there are four ongoing lawsuits in Iași and Bucharest in which Moldovan citizens have sued the General Inspectorate of the Border Police and the Iași Territorial Inspectorate of the Border Police, requesting the annulment of the documents that informed them in 2024 that they were denied entry into Romania through an eastern border crossing.

Court documents reviewed by G4Media.ro confirm that all four Moldovans are banned from entering Romania for five years—one case dating back to 2022, while the other three bans were issued in 2024. The reasons cited include „threats to national security and defense” and, in two cases, involvement in „financing, preparing, supporting in any way, or committing acts of terrorism.”

Who Are These Politicians?

Investigations by G4Media.ro reveal that all four individuals openly embrace pro-Russian views in Moldovan politics and are linked to Ilan Șor, a fugitive businessman sentenced to 15 years in prison. Șor is currently in Moscow, from where he allegedly attempts to influence Moldovan politics, including through large sums of money.

Maxim Moroșan

Moroșan is contesting his 2022-2027 entry ban at the Bucharest Court of Appeal. According to case documents, he attempted to enter Romania on April 9, 2024, via the Sculeni border crossing, intending to travel to Iași, Reșița, and Timișoara for a series of political meetings.

Upon checking his name in the database, Romanian authorities informed Moroșan that he was banned. He later posted on social media, calling the decision „paradoxical,” as he had „never visited Romania or any other European country before.”

At the time of the April 2024 incident, Moroșan was a councilor for the Socialist Party of Moldova (PSRM) in the Bălți Municipal Council. A Ziarul de Gardă investigation revealed that he lived in Russia for nearly 20 years, working as a magician and businessman, before returning to Moldova in 2020 and establishing the Russian-Moldovan Entrepreneurs’ Union and the organization „Я Бельчанин” („I Am from Bălți”), both allegedly funded by Grigore Caramalac, a fugitive Moldovan crime boss residing in Moscow.

Moroșan has been photographed at the Kremlin, holding a certificate of appreciation for a performance there, and has expressed hopes of one day meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin. In 2023, he was arrested for hooliganism after a restaurant brawl in Bălți.

Alexandru Beșchieru and Veaceslav Lupov

Beșchieru and Lupov both challenged their bans in October 2024 at the Iași Court. Beșchieru had attempted to enter Romania on July 6, 2024, via the Oancea border crossing, allegedly to travel to Greece on vacation with his family. Lupov, on the other hand, tried to cross on July 4, 2024, to attend a festival in Bulgaria.

Both were turned back at the border and later learned that their bans were issued by the Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs, under a law prohibiting entry for those „reported by international organizations or counter-terrorism institutions as financing, preparing, supporting in any way, or committing acts of terrorism.”

Igor Tuleanțev

Tuleanțev contested his September 9, 2024 entry denial at the Bucharest Court of Appeal, with the first hearing scheduled for February 26, 2025.

A former leader of the Russian Youth League in Moldova, Tuleanțev once posted a photo from the Romanian Parliament, captioned in Russian: „Bucharest is ours. We will teach them to love their homeland.”

In 2012, he reportedly orchestrated anti-EU demonstrations in Moldova, including violent attacks on unionist protesters in Bălți. He also has ties to Dmitri Rogozin, a Russian official banned from Moldova for anti-European rhetoric. Each year, Tuleanțev organizes pro-Soviet Victory Day motorcades in Chișinău.

The Bigger Picture

A source close to the cases of Beșchieru, Lupov, and Tuleanțev told G4Media.ro that their bans followed a tip-off from Moldovan authorities in March 2024. The warning suggested that 200 Moldovans were planning to protest in Bucharest during a European People’s Party congress attended by Moldovan President Maia Sandu.

Romania’s General Directorate of Internal Protection (DIPI) processed this intelligence, resulting in 116 Moldovans being banned from entering Romania, allegedly due to ties with Ilan Șor.

At the time, AUR denied any connection to Șor’s party, calling the allegations „dangerous misinformation and baseless fabrications.”

Meanwhile, Romanian and Moldovan authorities have provided limited responses to media inquiries about these bans, with SRI and Moldova’s Intelligence and Security Service (SIS) declining to comment.