Putin gives Russian military objective for 2026 focused on EU and NATO, NYT reports

According to sources in Western intelligence agencies, Russian leader Vladimir Putin announced his plans during a closed-door briefing with Russia’s military leadership. This came shortly after he publicly accused the West of "stoking up hysteria" over threats from Russia.

The Kremlin’s current hierarchy of priorities includes two main objectives: conquering Ukraine and establishing control over Moldova.

Moscow plans to seize southern Ukraine to create a "land bridge" to unrecognized Transnistria and gain a foothold to pressure the Alliance.

GRU camps, explosives and vote-buying

Journalists reviewed numerous documents and spoke with US and European intelligence officials. They found that Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU, organized training camps for young Moldovans in Serbia, Bosnia and near Moscow.

There, they were trained to:

• break through police lines and stage mass riots;
• make homemade explosives and set buildings on fire;
• operate drones equipped to drop explosives.

Another key element was a large-scale vote-buying operation run by Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor under the supervision of Russian official Sergei Kiriyenko.

More than 150,000 people were recruited into the network. The activists were paid nearly $20 million ahead of the 2024 referendum alone. Orthodox priests were also recruited to campaign for $1,000 payments.

Election attack and long-term threats

The peak of Russia’s operation came during Moldova’s parliamentary elections on September 28, 2025. Russian hackers breached the Central Election Commission’s systems, while trained operatives were preparing to carry out violent actions.

Thanks to hundreds of searches and arrests by Moldovan law enforcement, mass unrest was prevented, and the pro-Western party backed by Maia Sandu won more than 50% of the vote.

However, intelligence officials emphasize that the Kremlin has not stopped and is preparing for a prolonged destabilization campaign. Moscow publicly denies interfering in Moldova’s internal affairs or attempting to undermine the West.

As previously reported, on August 9, a powerful explosion occurred near the village of Crocmaz in Moldova. Fragments of a military drone were found at the scene, which Moldovan police described as a drone missile.

The following day, Chisinau recalled its ambassador from Russia, saying the incident constituted a serious violation of the country’s sovereignty.

Later, Moldova’s defense minister said that the drone that exploded near Crocmaz had been identified as Russian.