Igor Dodon

The Romanian Academy of Sciences on Thursday dismissed claims put forward by the President of Moldova in Strasbourg that his country has its own language.

It said the theme of a "Moldovan language" promoted by President Igor Dodon at a speech to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Wednesday was a revival of Soviet-era tropes.

Romania's President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday announced that Bucharest will partially revoke cooperation projects committed to Moldova, as his office is "not convinced" that the current government in Chisinau is on what he called "the European track".

The State Department announced on Monday that it will not allow Vladimir Plahotniuc or his closest relatives to enter the US because of his involvement in "corrupt acts that undermined the rule of law and severely compromised the independence of democratic institutions in Moldova".

The speed with which Chicu was installed, two days after Sandu lost a confidence vote and not long after the Socialists won control of the capital, has led some observers to accuse the Socialists of a premeditated plan. Sandu said the Socialists were running scared of her anti-corruption agenda.

Moldova's Prime Minister-designate Ion Chicu was approved by the country's parliament on Thursday, along with his proposed list of ministers who will form the new cabinet following the collapse of the former government led by pro-Western PM Maja Sandu just days prior.

Having formed a list of proposed ministers overnight, Chicu secured the support of 62 out of 101 deputies.

The new mayor of the Moldovan capital is widely seen as Russia's most promising political advocate in the country, after President Igor Dodon.

Moldova's coalition government was in jeopardy on Friday after the Socialist Party gave the pro-EU Prime Minister Maia Sandu a deadline to abandon her plan to take personal responsibility for naming the new General Prosecutor - after a commission entrusted with the job was axed.

Russia stands to expand its media presence in Moldova since pro-Moscow Socialists came to power.

Socialist Party candidate Ion Ceban won the mayoral race for Chisinau in the elections on Sunday with 52.39 per cent of the votes cast.

The pro-European candidate and co-president of the ACUM bloc, Andrei Nastase, scored 48.61 per cent.

According to data from the Central Election Commission, Ceban won the votes of 123,807 citizens, while Nastase got 112,513 votes.

In the second run-off round of local elections in the former Soviet country, Moldovan citizens on Sunday will select bosses for another 380 town halls.

In the first round, on October 20, voters elected 518 mayors in a race in which the pro-Russian Moldovan Socialist Party, PSRM, won the biggest number of votes in the country.