Whether you’re new to day trading or you’ve been trading for years, few things will help your career quite as much as holding a current and comprehensive education on full-blown trading strategies. The best day trading courses for beginners do more than teach you to day trade—they help you achieve financial independence.

Luckily, you don’t need to go back to college and begin a new degree in economics to learn to trade effectively. There are a number of reputable day trading courses taught online, each one aimed at a specific niche audience and which also offers its own unique teaching style.

Quick Look at the The Best Day Trading Courses:

1. Learn How to Trade Stocks - Benzinga (This is us, intro level Course)
2. One Core Program - Beginner to Advanced Traders
3. Eagle Investors - Beginning to advanced traders
4. Investors Underground - Mentorship Available
5. Zen Trading Strategies - Beginners who want to create their own algorithms
6. Silvia Bellrock: The Bellrock Accelerator - All trading levels
7. Fast Lane Traders - Technical Analysis
8. UC Trading - Prop Trading Education

Best Online Day Trading Courses

Now that you know what makes the best possible trading course, let’s dive into some great options for beginners.

1. Learn How to Trade Stocks

Who's it for? Beginning to advanced traders

Price: $47

Benzinga's signature course, How to Read Charts and Make Trades, will teach you the basics so you understand how to read charts and make winning trades in the market through simple, actionable strategies.

You'll also learn about why you should trade, how to pick a broker, trading strategies, price studies, technicals and indicators, how to develop a strategy and trading plan and learn about trading psychology. The class can help you be successful in a step-by-step format.

Master stock market investing with insider tips from a top instructor and experienced trader.

2. Asia Forex Mentor - One Core Program

Who it’s for: Beginner to Advanced Traders

Price: $997

Ezekiel Chew the founder at Asia Forex Mentor isn’t your typical trainer. He is a recognized expert in the finance industry and he is frequently invited to speak at major financial events. His insights into the live market are highly sought after by retail traders.

Ezekiel is considered to be amongst the top traders around who actually care about giving back to the community. He makes six figures a trade in his own trading and behind the scenes, Ezekiel trains the traders who work in banks, fund management companies and prop trading firms.

His highly regarded One Core Program teaches you how to trade not only forex but also stocks, commodities, crypto and more. To Ezekiel, it doesn’t matter what vehicle it is. It’s about trade selection and having various option opens up the best of the best trades.

The One Core Program covers the unique way of how he read the charts with a combination of price action and others. His 16 high-win rate strategies work in every move the market makes. The highly popular Road to Millions formula turned many new traders into full-time traders. The business behind trading, trade management methods, proprietary point calculation system and many more. It’s no wonder why the One Core Program is considered one of the best trading courses around. 

3. Eagle Investors

Who’s it for?: Traders of any skill level

Price: Free; Silver, $27 per month; Diamond, $87 per month

Eagle Investors is not so much a course as it is a method for trading. Anyone who registers for Eagle Investors can use a free account, Silver or Diamond plan to access alerts and trading information. The site is filled with data and statistics, including an education section for new traders. You can invest using alerts Eagle sends you, and you are free to chat with other traders in one of many chat rooms.

The idea behind Eagle is that you get alerts that can spur growth in your portfolio. Plus, you can share your investment ideas with others. Even though this isn’t a course, you can teach yourself how to trade, learn from the best and continue learning with every new alert.

4. Investors Underground

Who's it for? Beginning to advanced traders

Price: Monthly memberships start at $1,247

Investors Underground offers a basic and advanced trading course, but the crown jewel of the platform is its ongoing education program IU Elite, which offers a month-by-month subscription package. IU Elite packages come with both courses and also include daily stock watch lists, a library of video lessons to supplement course material and a host of Q&A webinars.

What really sets IU Elite apart is its emphasis on helping students use their teachers and one another to grow and become better day traders. Students who miss the cooperation-centric learning model of traditional collegiate courses will love Investors Underground’s community support network, which allows those who have questions about subject material to create a forum course to request community support or speak one-on-one with a moderator.

The platform also offers individual coaching from teachers and mentors as well—making it an excellent choice for both new traders who are looking for a little more hand-holding.

5. Zen Trading Strategies

Who’s it for? Beginners who want to create their own algorithms

Price: $597.00

The Zen Trading Strategies Masters Course in Automated Algorithmic Trading provides you with the exact processes, methods, beliefs, tools and automation to create the opportunity for financial and lifestyle freedom. You don’t need any programming knowledge to start.

Zen Trading believes the course will pay for itself exponentially. It shares some of the knowledge applied by some of the most successful traders of all time.

The course outlines how one trader took a $5,000 investment and turned it into more than $10 million. You’ll learn how to create your own profitable algorithms with its plug-and-play tools, and you can see your trades directly on the Tradingview chart.

The course will show you how to backtest any trading idea and automated every detail of the process. You will be able to automate your trading the same. day.

As an extra special bonus, Zen Trading created an exclusive Masters Course In Automated Algorithmic Trading Telegram group for all of the traders in this program, so you’ll get support throughout your trading journey. 

6. Silvia Bellrock: The Bellrock Accelerator

Who it’s for: Anyone looking to learn about trading

Price: $900 (discounts are often available)

At the aforementioned $900 price tag, the Bellrock Accelerator Course offers a wide range of benefits that go far beyond many other courses. When you take the Accelerator Course, you study via Podia, and you also receive updates to the course as they are released. With lifetime access, you can review and study the content as much as you need.

The beauty of the Accelerator Course is that Silvia teaches you how she entered the market, how she gained success and how she maintains that success. You can start from the ground up, learn at your own pace and continue investing in any style you please.

You might also invest in her Pro or Inner Circle services that offer stock tips, webinars, personal meetings and more.

7. Fast Lane Traders

Who’s it for: Beginners who want to learn the markets and how to invest profitably

Price: $97.99 per month; 30-day free trial

Fast Lane Traders is a 4-module trading course that compresses several years of learning into a short timeframe. You learn how to:

• Read charts
• Check indicators
• Handle technical analysis
• Buy stocks or crypto and when
• Turn a profit with your portfolio

When you register with Fast Lane Traders, you also get access to:

• The day trading chat room on Discord
• Real trading strategies
• Actionable alerts
• Videos you can watch and rewatch at any time

8. UC Trading

At UC Trading, there is a mentoring program that helps you learn the futures market for a reasonable price. For 1499€., you learn:

• Strategies to increase profits
• Developing that strategy to meet your need
• How to predict how the market will fluctuate
• Prop trading information

You will also receive 1-on-1 coaching that will help you hone your skills. This is the perfect time to ask questions and learn from your mistakes. Through 3 phases, you will learn more and more about becoming a day trader, how to trade futures, how to execute trades and how to become an independent trader when the course is complete.

Moreover, you gain access to a Discord server that allows you to participate in the UC Trading community, helping you learn more about trading. Plus, this access remains long after you finish your coursework, ensuring that you always have a place to go for trading information and strategies.

Characteristics of a Great Day Trading Course

Not all online courses are created equal. You’re likely asking yourself, “are day trading courses worth it?” And, you would be right to do so. However, there’s often quite a gap between, say, the best free-day trading course and a professional stock trading course.

Unfortunately, unlike a university course, be extra careful when signing up for online courses to make sure that the class is legitimate. Look for these four characteristics before you sign up:

1. Taught by a professional

The best day trading courses are taught directly from the source—trading experts. Whether the course instructor is a professor of finance or a trader with ten years of experience, only consider taking courses from professionals within the field.

For example, Warrior Trading is run by a professional. Therefore, every Warrior Trading webinar is taught by an expert who actually made their money doing what you want to do. The same can be said for Investors Underground, BearBull Traders, etc.

In making the right choice, you ensure that you’re receiving only the most accurate and up-to-date information.

2. The course offers educational support tools.

You may run into a concept or lesson you don’t understand. The best day trading courses offer a number of student support tools, from tools to contact the professor to an online forum where students can congregate and share information. Research these tools before getting started. Yes, you may feel you’ve found the best options trading course, but a class that’s “all talk and no tools” is practically useless.

3. The course covers the specific syllabus you’re interested in

The best day trading courses deal with specifications and attempt to appeal to a niche audience. Some day trading courses aimed at beginners may only teach the very basics, while others aimed at more advanced traders can cover more complicated topics.

Carefully read the course description before you sign up and make sure that it’s what you’re looking for. Stock market courses should cover investing on various stock markets. However, certain courses may not have descriptive titles, leading you to register for a class that, for example, teaches you to trade futures. You wanted to learn about barebones stocks. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking all investor education is the same.

4. The claims the course is making are reasonable

A teacher or course that claims to be able to teach you how to make millions by day trading or who offers a “guarantee” that you’ll see a certain amount of money from trading is more than likely trying to scam you. Yes, stock trading courses for beginners are intended for those with little to no experience. However, we all have common sense. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Find the Trading Course That's Right for You

Not every class will be the right fit for you. Finding the best trading courses and an instructor that you “click” with (and whose teaching style you find engaging/easy to understand) is one of the most important things you can do to Excellerate your chances at trading success. Looking for more courses? Check out the best technical analysis courses and the best online finance courses now.

Don’t be afraid to reach out to the instructor before signing up to ask a few questions—most instructors are happy to talk to potential students to gauge what they’re looking for in a course, and you’ll get a more intimate look at the course’s focus before spending money.

Look to expand your general investing skillset? Check out Benzinga's top picks for the best online brokerages for stock trading, the best day trading chat rooms and online investing courses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Taken aback by Florida’s attacks against its new AP African American studies course, the College Board late Saturday denounced the state Department of Education, saying it used the course to advance a politically motivated agenda.

The organization’s letter, published at 8 p.m. Saturday, came just two days after it released another statement that did not take such a harsh tone as it pushed back against the department’s claims that portions of the course are “historically fictional.”

“There continue to be conversations and misinformation, and we felt the urgency to set the record straight and not wait another day to do so,” a College Board spokesperson said. The College Board publishes AP courses and exams.

In its latest unsigned statement, the College Board said it is proud of its “historic” course, which has been crafted by renowned scholars. It acknowledged it made mistakes during the rollout and accused Florida of exploiting the situation.

Gov. Ron DeSantis has criticized the course and said Florida would not accept it without revisions. DeSantis has been using attacks against the way race is taught in schools, calling it “woke,” in many speeches amid wide speculation that he will use the issue as part of a presidential campaign.

Neither the governor’s office nor the Department of Education had responded to a request for comment on the College Board’s statement as of Sunday afternoon.

The College Board stated in its latest letter that it regrets not having denounced the Florida Department of Education’s “slander” that the course “lacks educational value.” The failure to speak up “betrayed Black scholars everywhere,” the College Board wrote.

It said it also should have made more clear that the course outline did not include all the scholarly articles, lectures and other materials that will be part of the course. That led to the idea that some important thinkers were eliminated, it said — something Florida officials claimed credit for.

“The vitriol aimed at these scholars is repulsive and must stop,” the group wrote.

The College Board made other defenses of the materials and the course preparation. Then it turned its sights on Florida’s interaction with the course.

It called the Department of Education’s claims that it had been in frequent dialogue with the College Board over the course content “a false and politically motivated charge.”

Florida officials have claimed credit for changes made to the course outline.

“We had no negotiations about the content of this course with Florida or any other state, nor did we receive any requests, suggestions or feedback,” the College Board wrote.

It said the organization was “naive” not to publicize Florida’s course rejection when it first came in September. It said the letter misspelled the word “African” and contained no explanation of the rejection.

Florida asked the College Board to call with questions, which it said it did. “These phone calls with FDOE (the Florida Department of Education) were absent of substance, despite the audacious claims of influence FDOE is now making.”

Rather, the letter states, the department official asked “vague, uninformed questions” and did not bring any African American studies experts to the call. The College Board said it asked for specific concerns in writing.

“They never sent us any feedback, but instead sent a second letter to us on January 12, 2023, as a PR stunt which repeated the same rejection but now with inflated rhetoric and posturing, saying the course lacked ‘educational value,’” the group wrote.

The College Board said it made a mistake in treating the department with the courtesy it usually gives to education agencies, “but they have instead exploited this courtesy for their political agenda.”

It contended that Florida’s effort to “engineer a political win” included claiming credit for specific changes to the course framework. It said the department leaked to reporters the state’s Feb. 7 letter to the College Board. In that letter, the Department of Education expresses gratitude for the removal of 19 topics.

The College Board said Saturday that the state never asked for those 19 syllabus to be removed, and that most remain in the official framework.

The department continues to deride African American studies by describing key syllabus as “historically fictional,” the College Board said. Requests for more explanation have not been answered, it added.

“The College Board condemns this uninformed caricature of African American Studies and the harm it does to scholars and students,” the College Board wrote.

• • •

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A trio of anthropologists from Touro University, the University of Arkansas and Stony Brook University analyzed current methods available to scientists looking to identify the food that a particular early hominin had eaten shortly before dying. In their Perspective piece published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Mark Teaford, Peter Ungar and Frederick Grine outline what they found and how they see such research impacting the study of early hominin development moving forward.

When studying a recovered fossil, the traditional means for attempting to determine what a given hominin ate is to focus on the teeth, if present. By noting their condition, coloration and how they were worn down from chewing, scientists can infer what the individual might have eaten. But identifying the exact food has remained difficult—at least until recently. New tools now allow researchers to study the calculus that forms on teeth.

Calculus on the teeth forms due to calcification of bacteria in the plaque that adheres to teeth. Study of calculus can reveal food particles, which can be analyzed to isolate the plant or animal eaten by a given individual. In this new effort, the researchers outline exact work by other teams using calculus found on early hominins to determine their diet.

One such study they highlight involved studying the type and features of scratches in the calculus, noting that such work is generally subject to the "last supper effect," whereby evidence is representative of only the last few days of a subject's life. Another study involved comparing isotopes found in the calculus, allowing for broadly determining which class of plants a given individual had been eating over a period of time prior to death.

Teaford, Ungar and Grine conclude their review by noting that as technology improves, techniques used by paleoanthropologists will evolve, allowing for a more clear picture of the environment in which early hominins lived—and that may help clear up their evolutionary history.

© 2023 Science X Network

The public launch of ChatGPT has led to considerable dismay at schools and universities. However, a position paper authored by more than 20 scientists at TUM and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität (LMU) working in educational, social, computer and data sciences shows that the so-called language models also present many opportunities for education. The work is published on the EdArXiv preprint server.

In this interview, the coordinator Prof. Enkelejda Kasneci explains how the new technology could benefit learners and make teachers' work easier.

The New York School District has banned the use of ChatGPT. It that the right way forward?

We think it's the wrong way. It's also the easy way out. The development of language models like ChatGPT is a technological milestone. There is no going back. The tools are in the world. They will get better and we have to learn how to use them constructively. We're convinced that they offer big opportunities for the empowerment of previously disadvantaged people. ChatGPT and similar programs can lead to greater educational equity.

Who could benefit from ChatGPT applications?

First, this is a tool that makes it possible for everyone in the world with internet access to learn—regardless of the quality of the education system in their own country. Second, it can help people to express themselves better in writing who otherwise have difficulty doing so, for example due to a disability. That can offer them new opportunities to participate in society.

And how about at school?

Here we see major potential for the personalized use of such tools to overcome the individual weaknesses of each child, to bring out strengths and contribute to constructive learning successes. We're talking about an AI-based tool that can recognize and produce various forms of text. Pupils could get suggestions for alternative wordings or better text compositions. That can help them Excellerate their ability to express themselves.

My research chair team has just developed a tool that can analyze an essay using large language models and provide feedback such as: "It would be better to use a consistent verb tense" or "You could pay more attention to the subjunctive." This feedback could be adjusted to the age and skill levels of the individual children.

At present, people seem to be worried that language learning will deteriorate.

We don't see it like that. On the contrary, applications like this can promote the understanding of language. But they can also be helpful in other subjects, for example by creating questions on a certain topic. Students preparing for exams at home could use it as a study partner that would focus on points where more work is needed. That is a level of individualized learning that would be difficult to achieve in the classroom.

So AI could make teachers' work easier, too?

We think so. Artificial intelligence could also support them in correcting schoolwork.

… that are generated with ChatGPT for pupils who want better grades.

Of course nobody can be certain that written homework is done without outside help. But these discussions remind me very much of the debates when Wikipedia was launched. Back then, people were worried that most homework would be copied from the internet. Then, as now, we have to start teaching children from the elementary school level the importance of not relying on the information of just one internet portal and that they need to check information and back it up with sources.

If a text automation program can write the answers for an exam, this also says something about the quality of the test itself. We have to ask ourselves what teaching methods we are using and to what extent we are helping learners to acquire competencies such as critical thinking and problem solving skills.

What is needed to ensure that ChatGPT and similar models are actually used in beneficial ways in the classroom?

Researchers must deliver more robust conclusions on the effects of the language models on learning, how they can be used in a certain learning context and when they will be ready for use. Holistic teaching concepts and continuing education opportunities will also be needed for teachers. All of us need to work together and bring about a rapid response. And the providers must take issues surrounding data protection, security, bias and distortions in machine learning, intellectual property and transparency very seriously.

It will take some time before these goals are achieved. How can teachers deal with ChatGPT in the meantime?

We advise all teachers: try out these tools! Discover them together with your students. There are no limits on creativity as long as you maintain a critical perspective.

WASHINGTON -- The Biden administration on Tuesday outlined how states and nonprofit groups can apply for $27 billion in funding from a “green bank” that will provide low-cost financing for projects intended to cut planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.

The so-called Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, created by Congress in the landmark climate law approved last year, will invest in clean energy projects nationwide, with a focus on low-income and disadvantaged communities.

The Environmental Protection Agency expects to award $20 billion in competitive grants to as many 15 nonprofit groups that will work with local banks and other financial institutions to invest in projects that reduce pollution and lower energy costs for families.

Another $7 billion will be awarded to states, tribes and municipalities to deploy a range of solar energy projects, including residential rooftop solar, community solar and solar storage.

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the green bank — modeled after similar banks established in states such as Connecticut, New York and California — will unlock billions of dollars in private investment to enable neighborhoods and communities "that have never participated in the clean-energy economy to participate in full force'' in creating green jobs.

Low-income and disadvantaged communities "who pay the largest percent of their income toward energy bills have been left out of the investment game (and) have not seen the infusion of private capital to help them realize opportunities ... for lots of reasons,'' said Regan, the first Black man to head the EPA.

“What we are focused on here is ensuring that this $27 billion opportunity is thought-out in a way that allows for that community, that population, to be along for the ride,'' he added. ”Obviously, if this had been done before, there would be no reason for the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. We are charged with bringing private capital off the sideline.''

The program expects to begin making grant awards this summer and has already received nearly 400 responses to preliminary inquiries, said Jahi Wise, the program's acting director.

Even before the grants are awarded, Republicans in Congress have taken aim at the green bank, calling it a taxpayer-funded “slush fund” ripe for abuse.

Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Ala., said he will sponsor a bill to repeal the fund, which he said will likely benefit Wall Street firms but "doesn’t help the American people with their utility bills.

"Will this $27 billion slush fund lower the cost of heating for these American families?” Palmer asked.

A spokesman for House Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., said the fund “allocates an incredible amount of authority and resources" to the EPA, yet lacks measures to ensure accountability or transparency in how the resources are used.

“In other words, this provision creates a taxpayer-funded slush fund for Wall Street and heightens the risk for overspending, fraud and abuse,” spokesman Sean Kelly said in a statement.

Democrats were much more optimistic, calling the fund a historic opportunity to cut greenhouse gas emissions, protect public health and create economic opportunity in disadvantaged and under-resourced communities.

“For years, we’ve fought to take the idea of a national climate bank from a vision to a reality. With today’s action from the EPA, we’re one step closer,'' said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., who pushed for the green bank along with Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and other Democrats.

Markey and Van Hollen said in a statement that they will work with EPA to ensure the new fund is national in scope, has a substantial “multiplier effect” with private investment and includes diverse stakeholders, including "communities that have been historically underserved” by banks and other financial institutions.

The EPA's announcement surprised some observers, who had considered the Coalition for Green Capital, a Washington-based non profit, as the likely choice to become the nation's de facto green bank, parceling out grants on behalf of the EPA. The politically influential group works with Connecticut and other states to accelerate investment in clean energy technologies.

Instead, the EPA will issue grants directly to anywhere from two to 15 nonprofits, Regan said.

Reed Hundt, chairman and CEO of the green capital group, applauded the EPA's announcement, saying the new fund will help fight climate change and create good-paying jobs.

Hundt, a lawyer and longtime ally of former Vice President Al Gore, said in a statement Tuesday that the coalition and its partners “appreciate the attention and care given to this program by the EPA.'' The group welcomes the opportunity to participate in the next steps outlined by the agency, he said.

Yahoo Finance’s Brooke DiPalma joins the Live show to discuss the decline in stock for Shake Shack following fourth-quarter earnings.

Video Transcript

RACHELLE AKUFFO: Shake Shack is out with its latest earnings posting a beat on the top and bottom lines, with same store sales rising 5% on the year. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma has got the breakdown for us. Hey, Brooke.

BROOKE DIPALMA: Good morning, Rachelle. Shares now rebounding, as they're dropping more than 8% after market open, following those fiscal fourth quarter earnings results. Of course, if we take a closer look, revenue slightly beat expectations, coming in at 238.5 million. Adjusted earnings per share coming in at a loss there, but higher than Wall Street expectations of $0.06 there. Same store sales also getting a bit of a boost here, mostly in line with Wall Street estimates of 5.16%, them coming in at 5.1%.

Now if we take a closer look at some key areas of focus, there were four that CEO Randy Garutti outlined in the earnings call, labor being one of them, as the fast food burger chain looks to focus on recruitment, retention, and training efforts. They're also looking at the addition of kiosks to help utilize labor in different ways, perhaps backfilling in the kitchen. But they admitted that they have not been immune to staffing challenges.

Also guest experience coming in as a key focus there, as an addition to its LTO offerings, Limited Time Offerings, that is, as well as partnerships with celebrity chefs that it emphasizes makes it different than fast food chains. Guest experience really something that the company grew upon. Growth plans, though, pretty big here. They expect to open 40 shacks, with roughly six of them in the first quarter.

Drive-thrus a big focus there. They aim to open more than roughly 10 to 15 more this year. They say that those drive-thrus may bring in more annual sales. Overall profitability, though, here in the US, remains a key focus. CEO noting that we know the dynamics of these past few years have impacted our historical margin profile. And Wall Street also keeping a closer look on those margins as we make way into 2023.

Story continues

RACHELLE AKUFFO: And Brooke, understandably, inflation was also in focus on the call. The company last raised menu prices in mid-October. What did the company say about the state of inflation and potential for any further price hikes?

BROOKE DIPALMA: That's right, those mid to single digits price hikes were, in fact, taken last October. Those were to offset food and paper packaging. That came in at roughly 29.5% of total operating expenses last quarter. Now things that drove those prices higher include fries, dairy, paper, as well as packaging. Beef prices-- the company is looking very closely on that as their top performer. Rather, their main core meal is that angus beef burger. But when it comes to consumer pricing and if prices will, in fact, go up again, the emphasis on margins does, in fact, remain top of mind, that is.

CEO Randy Garutti saying in a call to investors, quote, "We have to make sure we protect our margins. Sitting here today in February, we have no plan to take new price. We'll look at something as we see how inflationary pressures do or do not continue to persist at high levels." He goes on to say that they're going to persist at some level this year. I don't think anybody knows, and we got to make sure that we're providing a great value.

Now, Rachelle, one thing that they are not doing here is becoming massive discount providers. That's something that CEO Randy Garutti emphasized in the call. Right now, they're looking to cater towards those high income consumers that perhaps are trading down, perhaps looking for that truffle burger for 9.99 or more. So very interesting dynamic here. Lots of moving parts, but Wall Street reacting, like we noted before, roughly down 4% in midday trading.

RACHELLE AKUFFO: And interesting, choosing not to go for that race to the bottom when it comes with prices, but still providing something of a value option there as well. Brooke DiPalma, thank you so much.

By Elena Vardon

Plus500 Ltd. on Tuesday said it expects its performance for 2023 to be in line with current market expectations but weaker than the previous year as it declared special and final dividends and buybacks for 2022.

The fintech group declared a final dividend of $0.2156 a share for the year to Dec. 31 as well as a special dividend $0.1078 a share, bringing the full-payout to $0.9472 a share.

CHISINAU, Moldova -- Moldova’s president outlined Monday what she described as a plot by Moscow to overthrow her country’s government using external saboteurs, put the nation “at the disposal of Russia” and derail its aspirations to one day join the European Union.

President Maia Sandu’s briefing comes a week after neighboring Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country had intercepted plans by Russian secret services to destroy Moldova, claims that were later confirmed by Moldovan intelligence officials.

“The plan for the next period involves actions with the involvement of diversionists with military training, camouflaged in civilian clothes, who will undertake violent actions, attack some state buildings, and even take hostages,” Sandu told reporters at a briefing.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly a year ago, Moldova, a former Soviet republic of about 2.6 million people, has sought to forge closer ties with its Western partners. Last June, it was granted EU candidate status, the same day as Ukraine.

Sandu said the alleged Russian plot’s purpose is "to overthrow the constitutional order, to change the legitimate power from (Moldova’s capital) Chisinau to an illegitimate one,” which she said “which would put our country at the disposal of Russia, in order to stop the European integration process.”

She defiantly vowed: “The Kremlin’s attempts to bring violence to our country will not succeed.”

There was no immediate reaction from Russian officials to Sandu’s claims.

Sandu said that between October and December Moldovan police and its Intelligence and Security Service, the SIS, have intervened in “several cases of organized criminal elements and stopped attempts at violence.”

Over the past year, non-NATO member Moldova has faced a string of problems. These include a severe energy crisis after Moscow dramatically reduced gas supplies; skyrocketing inflation; and several incidents in exact months involving missiles that have traversed its skies, and debris that has been found on its territory.

Moldovan authorities confirmed that another missile from the war in Ukraine had entered its airspace on Friday.

Last April, tensions in Moldova also soared after a series of explosions in Transnistria — a Russia-backed separatist region of Moldova where Russia bases about 1,500 troops — which had raised fears it could get dragged into Russia’s war in Ukraine. Transnistria has a population of about 470,000 and has been under the control of separatist authorities since a civil war in 1992.

Sandu claimed that Russia wants to use Moldova in the war against Ukraine, without providing more details, and that information obtained by intelligence services contained what she described as instructions on rules of entry to Moldova for citizens from Russia, Belarus, Serbia, and Montenegro.

“I assure you that the state institutions are working to prevent these challenges and keep the situation under control,” Sandu said.

She said that Moldova’s Parliament must adopt draft laws to equip its Intelligence and Security Service, and the prosecutor’s office, “with the necessary tools to combat more effectively the risks to the country’s security.”

Costin Ciobanu, a political scientist at the Royal Holloway University of London, said it’s likely there “was a huge pressure” on Moldovan authorities to explain more to the public after Zelenskyy first went public with the security information last week in Brussels.

“Today’s announcement by President Sandu legitimizes the narrative that Moldova needs to focus on its security,” he told The Associated Press. “Probably, based on the evidence they received, they are now more sure of these kinds of attempts by Russians.”

He added that Sandu going public could also be a preemptive bid to thwart “Russia’s attempts to destabilize Moldova,” in the same way Western officials called out the Kremlin’s war plans before its invasion of Ukraine.

The president added that the plan would “rely on several internal forces, but especially on criminal groups” and went on to name two Moldovan oligarchs, Ilan Shor and Vladimir Plahotniuc, both of whom are currently in exile. Both men last year were sanctioned by the U.S. and the U.K.

Last fall, a series of mass anti-government protests organized by Shor's populist, Russia-friendly Shor Party, also rocked Moldova amid the energy crunch.

The president’s press briefing Monday comes after the surprise resignation on Friday of Moldova’s Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita. The same day, Sandu appointed her defense and security adviser, pro-Western economist Dorin Recean, to succeed Gavrilita.

On Friday, after Moldovan authorities confirmed the missile incident, U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters in Washington that “Russia has for years supported influence and destabilization campaigns in Moldova, which often involve weaponizing corruption to further its goals.”

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McGrath reported from Sighisoara, Romania

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Moldova’s President outlined Monday what she described as a plot by Moscow to use external saboteurs to overthrow her country's government, put the nation "at the disposal of Russia” and derail its aspirations to one day join the European Union.

President Maia Sandu's briefing comes a week after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country had intercepted plans by Russian secret services to destroy Moldova, claims that were later confirmed by Moldovan intelligence officials.

“The plan for the next period involves actions with the involvement of diversionists with military training, camouflaged in civilian clothes, who will undertake violent actions, attack some state buildings, and even take hostages,” Sandu told reporters at a briefing.

"The purpose of these actions is to overthrow the constitutional order, to change the legitimate power from Chisinau to an illegitimate one,” Sandu said, “which would put our country at the disposal of Russia, in order to stop the European integration process.”

She defiantly vowed: “The Kremlin’s attempts to bring violence to our country will not succeed.”

Since Russia invaded Ukraine nearly a year ago, Moldova, a former Soviet republic of about 2.6 million people, has sought to forge closer ties with its Western partners. Last June, it was granted European Union candidate status, the same day as Ukraine.

Sandu said that between October and December, Moldovan police and its Intelligence and Security Service, or SIS, have intervened in “several cases of organized criminal elements and stopped attempts at violence.”

Over the past year, Non-NATO Moldova has faced a string of problems. These include a severe energy crisis after Moscow dramatically reduced gas supplies; skyrocketing inflation; and several incidents in exact months involving missiles that have traversed its skies, and debris that has been found on its territory.

Moldovan authorities confirmed that another missile from the war in Ukraine had entered its airspace on Friday.

Sandu said that Russia wants to use Moldova in the war against Ukraine, without providing more details, and that information obtained by intelligence services contained what she described as instructions on rules of entry to Moldova for citizens from Russia, Belarus, Serbia, and Montenegro.

“I assure you that the state institutions are working to prevent these challenges and keep the situation under control,” Sandu said.

She said that Moldova’s Parliament must adopt draft laws to equip its Intelligence and Security Service, and the prosecutor’s office, “with the necessary tools to combat more effectively the risks to the country’s security.”

The President added that the plan would “rely on several internal forces, but especially on criminal groups” and went on to name two Moldovan oligarchs, Ilan Shor and Vladimir Plahotniuc, both of whom are currently in exile. Both men last year were sanctioned by the U.S. and the U.K.

Last fall, a series of mass anti-government protests organized by Shor's populist, Russia-friendly Shor Party, also rocked Moldova amid the energy crunch.

The President’s press briefing Monday comes after the resignation on Friday of Moldova’s Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita. The same day, Sandu appointed her defense and security adviser, pro-Western economist Dorin Recean, to succeed Gavrilita.

On Friday, after Moldovan authorities confirmed the missile incident, U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters in Washington that “Russia has for years supported influence and destabilization campaigns in Moldova, which often involve weaponizing corruption to further its goals.”

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McGrath reported from Sighisoara, Romania

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine