In Moldova

Opposition parties critical of President Maia Sandu's pro-European stance have joined forces in Moscow, forming a pre-election bloc with ambitions to contest upcoming presidential elections and a pivotal referendum on EU membership.

Fugitive and convicted Moldovan oligarch Ilan Shor announced on Monday the creation of a new political bloc to replace the Shor Party he previously led but which was recently declared unconstitutional by Moldova's Constitutional Court judges and outlawed.

Moldova's pro-Western President Maia Sandu said on Wednesday that she does not understand why Russia imposed a new embargo on Moldovan fruits on August 15, as her country's goods meet EU quality standards that are higher than Russian standards.

Moldova has banned officials of the pro-Russian separatist regime in Transnistria from obtaining special permits for work trips outside the country.

Seeking re-election, Igor Dodon is fanning the flames of dispute over the language Moldovans speak.

Economic and political analysts in Moldova have criticised an initiative by President Igor Dodon and the government led by Ion Chicu to shift 50 per cent of the National Bank of Moldova's annual profits into the state budget, describing it as a populist move that will not benefit ordinary people in the country.

A 5.2 magnitude earthquake on the Richter scale was registered in eastern Romania, in the Vrancea region.

The earthquakes was recorded in 3.26 am local time in Vrancea. The epicentre of the earthquake was at a depth of 140 kilometers.

There is no information on casualties or property damage.

Bogdan Aurescu, adviser on foreign affairs to Romania's President Klaus Iohannis, will pay a working visit to Chisinau, the Republic of Moldova, on Friday, amidst the recent political developments in Moldova, the Presidential Administration informs in a statement.