Moldova's image in European media carries an aura of geopolitical suspense—a faceless country described either as 'a territory sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine', the 'poorest country of Europe', or a vital source of migrants, sex workers and illegal organ transplants. Often, Moldova is painted in khaki by drawing attention to the frozen conflict in neighbouring Transnistria.
Everything changed dramatically after $1 billion disappeared from three of the country’s banks at the end of last year. Reports about Moldova in the European media in 2015 focused much more on 'Moldova's endemic corruption' rather than mass migration and Transnistria. An August 2015 article by Thorbjørn Jagland, secretary general of the Council of Europe, added fuel to the fire by calling on Europe to 'Bring Moldova back from the brink'.
Jagland made reference to the stolen billion and highlighted that Moldova is a territory where the interests of EU and Russia meet each other. 'Neither [Russia nor the EU] will benefit from a weak neighbor that brings with it financial black holes, organized crime, trafficking and uncontrolled migration,' Jagland wrote. The 'neighbour' in question was Moldova. Jagland called the country a 'captured state' and urged its citizens to return the country to their control. Protester in Chișinău, 27 September 2015. Photo: (c) Julia Udovitsina/DemotixAfter Jagland's article, 'captured state' and 'one stolen billion' became the new media catchphrases to describe Moldova. However, this tendency did not make the new reports on Moldova any more in-depth.
