Laurențiu Pleșca
Program CoordinatorEnglish
Italian
Romanian
Russian
My Areas of Expertise:
Laurențiu Pleșca is a scientific researcher and PhD candidate of the Doctoral School of Political Sciences at the University of Bucharest. His main areas of expertise are Russia's geopolitics in the Black Sea, the Eastern Partnership, EU common policies (foreign and security policy, and the Eastern Neighborhood), and the internal and external policies of the ex-Soviet states. Pleșca has a master's degree in international relations and European studies, and a bachelor's degree in political science, from the University of Bucharest.
Featured Work
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![Flag of the EU and Republic of Moldova](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-07/shutterstock_2410410659.jpg.webp?itok=AaoInyJo)
July 16, 2024
Moldova’s presidential elections and the referendum for EU accession could constitute a make-or-break moment for consolidating democracy in the...
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![Assembly of the European Moldova. National meeting of the Moldavian people. Flag of the European Union and Republic of Moldova. Chisinau, Moldova - 21 May 2023.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-06/shutterstock_2309737679.jpg.webp?itok=PYvyIRHR)
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![Wall of Romanian campaign posters](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-06/shutterstock_2460940421.jpg.webp?itok=_XwfAT99)
June 5, 2024
Besides local and European elections which take place this weekend, Romanians will also vote in September for a new president, and in December for a...
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![Dimly lit Georgian flag](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-05/shutterstock_1353394832.jpg.webp?itok=78aMYt7Y)
May 20, 2024
Georgia’s struggle with the “foreign agents” bill highlights broader issues of democratic backsliding and geopolitical tug of war. The law is seen as...
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![Turkey election rally, crowd waving Turkish flag, 2023](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-04/shutterstock_2240017925.jpg.webp?itok=S38Y9Buy)
April 5, 2024
Türkiye's political landscape is undergoing a transformation, and the results of last weekend’s local elections could herald significant shifts in the...
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![Protest against corrupted government in Republic of Moldova. Young man wrapped in flag of Moldova at "tent town".](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-03/shutterstock_316215041.jpg.webp?itok=2yZ_KuGD)
March 21, 2024
When the leader of Transnistria last month called an extraordinary congress of deputies amid rising disputes with the Moldovan authorities,...
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![Moldovan President Maia Sandu stands at a podium with Moldovan flags behind her](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-03/shutterstock_2171020225.jpg.webp?itok=-gYBe1Er)
March 14, 2024
Moldova is due to hold its next presidential election in autumn this year. Laurențiu Pleșca and David Levine write that given the high risk of Russian...
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![Flags of Republic of Moldova pictured in Presidential Palace of Moldova in Chisnau.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2023-11/shutterstock_2281956407.jpg.webp?itok=5lXRpHJg)
November 27, 2023
Moldova held local elections on 5 and 19 November. Clara Volintiru and Laurențiu Pleșca assess what the results of the elections told us about the...
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![TIRASPOL, TRANSNISTRIA – CIRCA JULY 2017: Statue of Vladimir Lenin in Tiraspol on July 2017. Transnistria parliament building in Tiraspol. In front is a statue of Vladimir Lenin.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2023-10/shutterstock_712567078.jpg.webp?itok=24CBYxjO)
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![A crowd of people with one person holding up the flags of Moldova and the European Union on flag poles.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_image/public/2024-01/shutterstock_2309737679.jpg.webp?itok=Ro_mZUc7)
Massive financial and technical support is needed to accelerate reform and prevent backsliding during the long negotiation process....