The government from Chisinau welcomed the application of sanctions by the USA against the fugitive oligarchs Vladimir Plahotniuc and Ilan Şor and thanked the American Government for the measure taken. President Maia Sandu thanked all, including investigative journalists, who contributed to punishing the corrupt,

The head of state posted an optimistic message on Facebook, that corruption can be defeated in the Republic of Moldova.

"The grand corruption and illegal financing of political parties in the Republic of Moldova can, however, be sanctioned... Plahotniuc used corrupted money and political influence to eliminate political rivals and subjugate the country's justice system. At the same time, OFAC found that Ilan Șor, who is also among the beneficiaries of the theft of the billion, is complicit in actions to undermine the rule of law, for the benefit of the Russian Federation. Şor, together with other corrupt oligarchs and involvement of foreign entities, undertakes actions to destabilize the political situation in the Republic of Moldova. Supported by the mentioned entities, Șor undertook efforts to undermine the process of obtaining the status of a candidate country for the EU by the Republic of Moldova. I hope that the constatations of OFAC and the measures taken by the US Government will serve as an example for justice in the Republic of Moldova. Justice that sabotaged and procrastinated the criminal prosecution, the examination of the court cases, the prosecution for corruption, and the recovery of the money from Plahotniuc, Șor and the other corrupt people," said Maia Sandu in her post.

The head of the Government, Natalia Gavriliţa, stated in a press conference that the issue of including Plahotniuc and Şor in an international list of sanctions was raised in 2018 when Plahotniuc was in government.

"Today, Moldovan citizens were treated fairly. The application of sanctions means that those corrupt will end up in court, their property will be confiscated, and the stolen money will be recovered. Corruption is the same as high treason," said Natalia Gavriliţa.

"Plahotniuc and Şor are included in the list of international sanctions. It is a victory for the people and democracy in our country. We thank the US Government", wrote the Minister of Justice, Sergiu Litvinenco, on Facebook.