Vladimir Filat (born 6 May 1969), commonly referred to as Vlad Filat (), is a Moldovan businessman and politician, founder of Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova. He was the

Prime Minister of Moldova The Prime Minister of Moldova ( ro, Prim-ministrul Republicii Moldova) is Moldova's head of government. The Prime Minister is formally appointed by the President of Moldova and exercises executive power along with the cabinet, subject to parlia ...

from 25 September 2009 to 25 April 2013. He also was appointed as the

Interim President An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of a country's president when the incumbent president is unavailable (such as by illness or a vacation) or when the post is vacant (such as for death, injury, resignation, dismissal ...

of Moldova for a brief period of time in 2010. Following his conviction on charges of accepting bribes, Filat was released from jail in December 2019, 6 years earlier than his initial sentence.

Education and early career

Vlad is the second child of Maria and Vasile Filat and was born on May 6, 1969, in Lăpușna, a commune in the

Moldavian SSR The Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic ( ro, Republica Sovietică Socialistă Moldovenească, Moldovan Cyrillic: ) was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union which existed from 1940 to 1991. The republic was formed on 2 August 1940 ...

. Alongside his two sisters (Ala and Valentina) and brother Ion, Vlad grew up in a part of Lăpușna called "Talcioc". In 1986, he graduated from high school in his hometown. Between 1986 and 1987, he worked at the school radio station until he was called up for military service. He carried out his

compulsory military service Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day ...

in the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

(May 8, 1987–August 15, 1989), in

Simferopol Simferopol () is the second-largest city in the Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and is considered the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. However, it is ...

and

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

. He served in the KGB's Border Troops, holding the rank of

private first class Private first class (french: Soldat de 1 classe; es, Soldado de primera) is a military rank held by junior enlisted personnel in a number of armed forces. French speaking countries In France and other French speaking countries, the rank (; ...

and being decorated by his KGB superiors. From 1989 to 1990, he studied at the Cooperation College (''Kooperativny technikum'') of

Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ), also known as Kishinev (russian: Кишинёв, r=Kishinjóv ), is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial center, and is located in the middle of the ...

, going on to study law at the

University of Iași The Alexandru Ioan Cuza University (Romanian: ''Universitatea „Alexandru Ioan Cuza"''; acronym: UAIC) is a public university located in Iași, Romania. Founded by an 1860 decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, under whom the former Academia Mih ...

(1990–1994). As a student, he was the leader of the "League of students from Bessarabia in Romania", an organization formed by Moldovan students in

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. In

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, among his classmates was Alexandru Tănase. While he was a student in Iași, he met his wife Sanda in the autumn of 1991; they dated for only three months before they married. Between 1994 and 1998, Vlad Filat initiated and conducted more business in Romania. He was general director of "RoMold Trading SRL" in Iași (1994–1997) and the president of the Administrative Council of "Dosoftei" company in Iași (1997–1998).

Early political activity

Filat was a member of the Democratic Party of Moldova (PDM) from 1997, when the party was founded, until 2007. Having returned to

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistri ...

for good in 1998, he was appointed general director of the Department of Privatization and State Property Administration from the Ministry of Economy and Reform of the Government of the Republic of Moldova (1998—1999). He was a State minister in the

Ion Sturza Ion Sturza (born 9 May 1960) is a Moldovan politician and businessman who served as Prime Minister of Moldova from 19 February to 12 November 1999. On 21 December 2015, President Nicolae Timofti nominated Ion Sturza to occupy the position of prim ...

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

Alliance for Democracy and Reforms The Alliance for Democracy and Reforms (often abbreviated to ADR) was a governing coalition in Moldova between numerous non-Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova, Communist parties which had absolute majority in the Parliament of the Re ...

from 12 March 1999, to 12 November 1999. In 2000, Filat was elected Vice-President of the Democratic Party (PDM). In the 2005 parliamentary election, he became a member of the

Moldovan Parliament The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova is the supreme representative body of the Republic of Moldova, the only state legislative authority, being a unicameral structure composed of 101 elected MPs on lists, for a period of 4 years. Parliamen ...

. Until March 2009, he was Vice-President of the Parliamentary Commission for Security, Public Order, and Defense. He was also a member of the EU-Moldova Parliamentary Cooperation Committee. He ran for

Mayor of Chișinău The Mayor of Chișinău, officially the General Mayor of the Municipality of Chișinău ( ro, Primar general al municipiul Chișinău), is the head of the executive branch of Chișinău's government and a member of the city's Municipal Counci ...

in the 2007 local election and won 8.32% of the vote, in fourth place. Soon after the local election, in September 2007, he left the Democratic Party after ten years of political activity inside the party. Filat has been the President of the Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova since December 2007.

Moldovan parliamentary election, 2009

In the April 2009 parliamentary election, his party won 15 seats and in the July 2009 parliamentary election

PLDM The Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova ( ro, Partidul Liberal Democrat din Moldova, PLDM) is a conservative political party in Moldova. The party is led by Tudor Deliu. Until 2016, PLDM was led by Vlad Filat, who was Prime Minister of Moldova fr ...

became the second party in the country with 18 seats and the first party within the Alliance For European Integration (AIE).

Alliance for European Integration

After the July 2009 parliamentary election, alongside Mihai Ghimpu,

Marian Lupu Marian Lupu (; born 20 June 1966) is a Moldovan politician who was the President of the Parliament of Moldova between 2010 and 2013. From this position he served as Acting President of the Republic from 2010 until 2012. Personal life Marian Lup ...

, and

Serafim Urechean Serafim Urechean (born 2 February 1950 in Larga, Briceni District) is a Moldovan politician. He held the position of general mayor of Chișinău municipality (1994–2005) and interim prime minister of the Republic of Moldova (5 – 17 February 1 ...

, Vlad Filat signed the Alliance For European Integration (AIE) in a press-conference on August 8, 2009. Towards the end of August 2009, he became the candidate of the Alliance For European Integration (AIE) for the position of

Prime Minister

The

Constitutional Court of Moldova The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Moldova () represents the sole body of constitutional jurisdiction in the Republic of Moldova, autonomous and independent from the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. The task of the Constitu ...

confirmed earlier on September 17, 2009 the legitimacy of Mihai Ghimpu's position as

Acting President of Moldova The President of the Republic of Moldova () is the head of state of Moldova. The current president is Maia Sandu, who assumed office on 24 December 2020. Duties and functions The office of the presidency in Moldova is largely ceremonial, ...

, which gave him the right to nominate a prime minister. On the same day, Ghimpu signed a decree nominating Filat for the office of prime minister. Earlier on September 17, the

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

approved a new government structure; according to the draft structure, the number of ministries remains unchanged at 16 but their names and responsibilities have been changed. The Alliance for European Integration gave a vote of confidence to the new government headed by PM Vladimir Filat at a plenary meeting on September 25, 2009. On March 8, 2013 Filat was dismissed by motion of censure following charges of corruption, abuse of power and influence peddling. In spite of this, President Nicolae Timofti decreed that members of the government should continue to exert their public duties until a new government were to be formed. Subsequently, on April 10, 2013 the President nominated Vlad Filat as a candidate for Prime Minister, authorizing him with the mission of forming a new government. However, on April 22, 2013, the Constitutional Court ruled that this decree is unconstitutional, stating that a Prime Minister ousted by vote of no confidence following suspicions of corruption cannot further perform this duty and that the President has the constitutional obligation to appoint in the interim capacity a member of the government whose integrity was not affected. The President appointed

Iurie Leancă Iurie Leancă (; born 20 October 1963) is a Moldovan politician who was the Prime Minister of Moldova from 2013 until 2015. He was Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration from 2009 to 2013 as part of the First and Second Filat Cabin ...

as Acting Prime Minister on April 25, 2013.

Arrest and accusations of corruption

Filat was stripped of his immunity and handcuffed in parliament on October 15, 2015. He was investigated for the 2014 Moldovan bank fraud scandal and accused of having taken bribes of about $250 million from Ilan Shor, who was chairman of the board at Savings Bank from April to November 28, 2014. Filat has denied wrongdoing and said the allegations against him are politically motivated. On June 27, 2016, Vlad Filat was sentenced to 9 years in prison. in February 2019, Filat's son was ordered to pay nearly half a million pounds after an investigation by the

National Crime Agency The National Crime Agency (NCA) is a national law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's lead agency against organised crime; human, weapon and drug trafficking; cybercrime; and economic crime that goes across regional and in ...

found that he had paid £390,000 up front for a lavish apartment in the

Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Toponymy Knightsbridge is an ancien ...

area of

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and £200,000 for a

Bentley Bentayga The Bentley Bentayga is a mid-size luxury crossover SUV produced by Bentley Motors since late 2015. It is the first SUV to be produced by the brand. Its body is manufactured at the Volkswagen Zwickau-Mosel Plant in Germany, then painted by Pa ...

. With no registered income in the UK, three bank accounts belonging to his son were frozen under Criminal Finances Act 2017.

Honours

* In December 2013, Filat was awarded by the

President of Moldova The President of the Republic of Moldova () is the head of state of Moldova. The current president is Maia Sandu, who assumed office on 24 December 2020. Duties and functions The office of the presidency in Moldova is largely ceremonial, ...

Nicolae Timofti with the highest distinction in Moldova, " Order of the Republic". * On 25 November 2014, Filat was awarded by the

President of Romania The president of Romania ( ro, Președintele României) is the head of state of Romania. Following a modification to the Romanian Constitution in 2003, the president is directly elected by a two-round system and serves for five years. An indi ...

Traian Băsescu Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a conservative Romanian politician who served as President of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian Minister of Transport on multiple occasions between 1991 ...

with National Order of Faithful Service of level Grand Cross. * In November 2013, Filat was awarded by the then-

President of Georgia President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

Mikheil Saakashvili, with one of the highest distinctions in the country – the Order of Excellence.

Personal life

Filat divorced Sanda Filat in August 2012, a

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the pre ...

. They have two children: Luca (b. 1995) and Iustina (b. 1998). In January 2014, Vlad Filat married former Pro TV Chișinău presenter Angela Gonța.Vlad Filat și Angela Gonța s-au cununat
/ref> In June 2014Angela Gonța a NĂSCUT
ziarulnational.md Vlad Filat and Angela Gonța became parents, with birth of their daughter Ekaterina.

Gallery

File:Filat and Van Rompuy.jpg, Filat and Herman Van Rompuy File:Flickr - europeanpeoplesparty - EPP Summit September 2010 (69).jpg,

and Filat File:EPP Summit March 2011 (63).jpg, Mikheil Saakashvili and Filat File:EPP Summit March 2011 Tymoshenko.jpg, Filat and Yulia Tymoshenko File:Filat and Barroso.jpg, Filat and

José Manuel Barroso José Manuel Durão Barroso (; born 23 March 1956) is a Portuguese politician and university teacher, currently serving as non-executive chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He previously served as the 11th president of the European Commis ...

File:Flickr - europeanpeoplesparty - EPP Summit September 2010 (27).jpg, Filat and

Mart Laar Mart Laar (born 22 April 1960) is an Estonian politician and historian. He served as the Prime Minister of Estonia from 1992 to 1994 and from 1999 to 2002. Laar is credited with having helped bring about Estonia's rapid economic development dur ...

File:Flickr - europeanpeoplesparty - EPP summit 494.jpg,

Sali Berisha Sali Ram Berisha (; born 15 October 1944) is an Albanian conservative politician and former cardiologist who served as the second President of Albania from 1992 to 1997 and Prime Minister from 2005 to 2013. He is also the current chairman of ...

Nikola Gruevski Nikola Gruevski ( mk, Никола Груевски, pronounced ; hu, Nikola Gruevszki; born 31 August 1970) is a Macedonian politician who served as Prime Minister of Macedonia from 2006 until his resignation, which was caused by the 2016 Mace ...

and Filat File:Flickr - europeanpeoplesparty - varia 022.jpg, Wilfried Martens and Filat File:Flickr - europeanpeoplesparty - EPP Summit September 2010 (23).jpg, Filat and

Valdis Dombrovskis Valdis Dombrovskis (born 5 August 1971) is a Latvian politician serving as Executive Vice President of the European Commission for An Economy that Works for People since 2019 and European Commissioner for Trade since 2020. He previously served ...

File:EPP Congress Marseille 5952 (6472494933).jpg, Filat at the EPP Congress Marseille (2011) File:EPP Summit, 14 Mar. 2013 (8556356321).jpg, Filat at the EPP Summit (2013)

References

External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Filat, Vlad 1969 births Living people Acting presidents of Moldova Alexandru Ioan Cuza University alumni Cooperation College of Chișinău alumni Democratic Party of Moldova MPs Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova MPs Moldovan MPs 2014–2018 Members of the parliament of Moldova Moldovan businesspeople Moldovan jurists Moldovan MPs 2005–2009 Moldovan MPs 2009 Moldovan MPs 2009–2010 People from Hîncești District Prime Ministers of Moldova Heads of government who were later imprisoned Soviet Army personnel Romanian people of Moldovan descent