France denies accusations of interference in elections in Romania

On Sunday, the French Ministry of abroad Affairs rejected accusations of Paris' interference in a second circular of presidential elections in Romania.

"On Telegram and Twitter (now the X-ed social network) there are completely unfounded accusations of France's alleged interference with the presidential elections in Romania. France categorically rejects these accusations and calls on everyone to act responsibly and respect Romanian democracy", the French MFA reported on the X portal.

The Ministry of abroad Affairs has joined the publication of a screenshot of the post of communicator founder Telegram Pavla Durov, who earlier on Sunday said that he was asked to "request to silence conservatives in Romania before today's presidential election". He said that the request came from the “Western European government” – Durow did not mention the country's name, but covered the message with an image of a baguette associated with France.

At the same time, the French MFA falsely accused Russia of interfering in the elections in Romania, saying that "in this context, the fresh accusations against France" were allegedly "only a distraction in the face of real threats of interference in the case of Romania".

Earlier on Sunday, Russian MFA spokesperson Maria Zacharova had already responded to the allegations of the Romanian MFA concerning Russia's alleged interference in the second circular of the presidential elections in Romania, reminding them of their scandalous character and ordering them to “wash”.

On Friday, Romanian presidential candidate and leader of the Nationalist organization Alliance for Romanian Unification (AUR) George Simion accused French president Emmanuel Macron of direct interference in Romanian elections. He said the French ambassador went to regions across the country to convince leaders and businessmen to support another candidate.

A second circular of presidential elections will be held in Romania on Sunday. The first circular was held on 4 May and the most votes were received by the leader of the Nationalist organization Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR) George Simion (41%) and Mayor of Bucharest Nicosor Dan (21%).

The presidential elections in Romania in 2025 are held in the face of a political crisis due to the annulment of the results of the first circular held in 2024, erstwhile the independent candidate Calin Georgescu won, but the results were cancelled due to alleged interference in the electoral process via social media. This decision sparked protests in the country and accusations from Romanian authorities about suppressing the opposition, including the US administration.