Moldovan Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatîi refuses Russian-language question

Moldovan Defense Minister Anatolie Nosatîi sparked public debate following a press conference on August 12, after he declined to answer a question posed in Russian. When a journalist began her inquiry in Russian, Nosatîi interrupted, stating, “I do not understand you.”

After the journalist rephrased the question in Romanian, the minister expressed his appreciation, thanking her for using the state language and praising her proficiency. While Nosatîi’s official biography indicates he is a native Romanian speaker who also speaks Russian and English, his refusal to engage in Russian has drawn mixed reactions online. Some observers have characterized the gesture as patriotic, while others suggested he could have simply requested a translation.