DISINFO: France manipulates fundamental democratic mechanisms by interfering in Romanian elections
SUMMARY
Earlier, [Telegram founder] Durov stated on X that [the head of French intelligence] Nicolas Lerner had asked him this spring to "silence Romanian conservatives before the elections". which he refused.
This is no longer just a blatant violation of freedom of expression and human rights in France. This charge is much more serious: it concerns direct interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state and manipulation of a fundamental democratic mechanism, namely elections.
RESPONSE
The goal of this disinformation story is to promote a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative accusing the EU of interfering in Romania’s election.
These allegations were provided with no evidence whatsoever. Accordingly, the French government immediately refuted the allegations. The France diplomacy account on X said that "the recent accusations against France are merely a diversionary manoeuvre from the real threats of interference targeting Romania".
This was in reference to the annulment of the first round of the Romanian presidential elections in December 2024 after the documented, real and serious threat, which included the manipulation of the TikTok algorithm and secret payments to online influencers. The decision was made by competent Romanian authorities, based on documented facts, not unverified claims circulating on social media.
Previously, pro-Kremlin outlets have baselessly framed Romania’s annulment of the 2024 presidential election by the Constitutional Court as the result of Western interference, and accused the EU of being behind the prosecution of Georgescu in March 2025.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that Romania is under EU tyranny, that Euro-Atlantic institutions and the US were behind annulment of Romania’s election, that elections in Romania show that EU officials think about the interests of Ukraine, not Europe, that Romania illegally cancels first round of elections in order to block the raise of a humane, non-anti-Russian candidate, or that the US and EU only support democratic elections when the winner aligns with their interests.