The authorities of the Republic of Moldova have prevented a group of politicians from Europe and the United States — including a current Member of the European Parliament — from entering the country to attend the international conference “Make Europe Great Again” (MEGA) in Chișinău. According to official sources, entry was denied to a total of 17 individuals, sparking immediate protests and heated debates on the European and international political stage.
On July 27, at Chișinău International Airport, Czech MEP Ondřej Dostál was detained, declared persona non grata, and expelled from the country. Moldovan authorities even confiscated his valid diplomatic passport, promising to return it only after his arrival in Bucharest. With an ironic and critical tone, Dostál commented: “If this is the demonstration of democracy in a country that aspires to join the European Union, then Europe should seriously question Moldova’s integration path.”
A similar incident involved American activist Brian Brown, a well-known supporter of Donald Trump and considered close to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Brown was initially denied entry but was eventually allowed into the country following direct intervention from the U.S. Embassy in Chișinău. He later declared that he could not understand what model of European integration and democratic values the Moldovan authorities claimed to uphold.
Entry was also denied to Dimos Thanasoulas, a representative of the Greek party NIKI. In an official statement, the party’s spokesperson declared that “Europe is being liberated” and that history has already placed Moldovan President Maia Sandu “on the losing side.”
Romanian MP Valeriu Munteanu also voiced strong criticism against the ruling PAS regime, stating that the authorities in Chișinău intend to conduct the electoral campaign by allowing only a single political vision and a uniform way of thinking, deliberately excluding any critical voices. He stressed that such an attitude is incompatible with the democratic principles Moldova claims to embrace in its bid to join the EU.
The organizers of the MEGA conference issued an urgent appeal to the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the embassies of EU member states, calling for a strong and public response to the incident. They described the entire episode as a “deliberate political act of censorship and humiliation against elected representatives of the European people.”
Furthermore, the organizers denounced what they consider to be a serious violation of international diplomatic norms, describing the incident as a direct challenge not only to the dignity of the rejected guests but also to the institutional integrity of the European Union itself. In their view, the actions of the PAS party represent a troubling signal of Moldova’s transformation: from a country aspiring to join the EU into a state seeking to control political debate and ideas through authoritarian tools and censorship.
