Veaceslav Valico

Veaceslav Valico is a civic activist with anti-Western and pro-Russian views. He previously worked as a journalist at Ren TV Moldova, a TV station known for promoting conspiracy theories. He began his activist career in 2012 as one of the leaders of a self-proclaimed resistance group against unionists who had organised marches in Bălți and Chișinău. He maintained that these unionist marches were illegal while advocating for a referendum on joining the Eurasian Union. He later entered politics and consistently promoted closer ties with Russia. In 2014, he ran for parliament on the "Moldova's Choice - Customs Union" electoral bloc list as a member of Victor Șelin's Social Democratic Party. During this period, he announced an "internet fight" and "resistance against foreign enemies." Political commentators noted similarities between Valico's rhetoric and separatist movements in eastern Ukraine.

During the Democratic Party's governance period, which claimed to be pro-European, he presented himself as a supporter of this political formation and served on the economic council under the prime minister. During this time, he frequently appeared on oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc's television channels. In June 2019, he participated in the Democratic Party of Moldova's (PDM) protest before the party surrendered power. He delivered a speech from the PDM stage controlled by Plahotniuc, praising him "for defending the country" and criticising then-president Igor Dodon, demanding his resignation.

Also in 2019, he attempted to run in parliamentary elections in the Ciocana district constituency but failed to gather the required number of signatures.

Two years later, he ran as an independent candidate in the parliamentary elections, with controversial fugitive businessman Veaceslav Platon serving as his trusted representative. Subsequently, Valico registered the Popular Resistance Front Political Party with ASP. In 2021, he also claimed to have submitted documents for registering the EU.MOLDOVA party.

A year later, Valico aligned himself with the Șor Party, which was later declared unconstitutional. In June 2022, he announced plans for a major concert in the Great National Assembly Square (PMAN) featuring Russian rapper Morgenshtern. The performer later withdrew, advising his fans to stay home and implying the organisers were suspicious. Other Russian performers, including Filip Kirkorov and Egor Kreed, were scheduled to replace Morgenshtern, but the concert was ultimately cancelled. Valico later claimed he was merely a representative of the organisers and that funding came from the diaspora. He named Victoria Șapa, a member of the Moldovan diaspora in Canada, as the concert sponsor. In November 2023, Șapa ran in local elections in Bălți for the "Șansă" Party, affiliated with Ilan Șor. Later, interim Prosecutor General Dumitru Robu revealed that the Șor Party had paid $260,000 for organising the PMAN concert.

In 2023, Valico founded the POD - Party of "Opportunity and Development." He declared on social media that it would "not be anyone's business project" and would be funded "exclusively through party member contributions." Just two months later, he announced his withdrawal from politics. This didn't prevent him from campaigning against Moldova's European integration during the 2024 referendum, using Russian propaganda narratives and spreading panic through social media videos. In the 2024 presidential elections, he supported Irina Vlah while criticising Maia Sandu, Igor Dodon, Aleksandr Stoianoglo, and Renato Usatîi, often resorting to disinformation.

Veaceslav Valico has been involved in numerous provocative campaigns over time. During the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, he mobilised an anti-vaccination group called Terra Freedom, both online and through street protests. This group continues to promote conspiracy theories about Covid, vaccination, and the war in Ukraine. Valico initiated the "Living Shield" (Живой щит) movement, launched at a 2023 demonstration in Gagauzia. The movement campaigns against potential war in Moldova while promoting the narrative that acquiring defence equipment would lead to a scenario similar to Ukraine's. French media reported Valico's involvement in destabilising actions in Paris, which experts linked to Russian FSB operations amid Russia's war against Ukraine and the Israel-Palestine conflict. Later, on TV8, Valico acknowledged his involvement and presented his version of events.

In 2021, Valico was added to Ukraine's national security threat list. He was included in the database of the Ukrainian Center for Research on Crimes against National Security for organising events that threaten people's lives.

Veaceslav Valico appears in two civil court cases filed by a commercial bank. In the first case, he was ordered to pay a debt and legal expenses amounting to 30,000 lei. Subsequently, the bank sued him "to defend its honour and professional reputation," demanding he remove "information damaging the bank's professional reputation" from his social media pages and "cease the defamation media campaign." The bank's action was dismissed. In 2017, due to Valico's unpaid debt, the court bailiff, on behalf of the bank, requested a travel ban, but the court rejected the request.

Veaceslav Valico is married to Maria Valico (formerly Novacova), who displays a luxurious lifestyle on social media, showcasing expensive gifts from her husband.