officials announced they have arrested 6 people accused of plotting a coup with “agents of a foreign power, located both in Romania and the .”
The announcement from the public prosecutor’s office said the goal of the group was to establish a paramilitary militia, overthrow the Romanian government, introduce a new constitution, and pull the country out of .
Two of the alleged plotters are said to have travelled to Moscow in January, where they met with backers of the coup. The Romanian intelligence service SRI said the individuals “actively requested the support of officers from the Embassy of the Russian Federation.”
One of the suspects is 101-year-old retired major general Radu Theodoru. Theodoru is a denier, has praised Romania’s fascist leadership from the , and has described the current government as “a system organized to rob [the] country.”
Rising tensions between Romania and Russia
The arrests follow yesterday’s expulsion of two Russian officials by the Romanian government. The officials were the Russian military attaché and his deputy, who were both accused of colluding with the far-right presidential candidate .
Georgescu won the first round of the presidential elections last November, but after accusations of interference from Russia. He is currently under investigation for “inciting actions against the constitutional order.” He continues to deny any relationship with Russia.
Edited by: Elizabeth Schumacher
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