Presidents of Moldova

Moldova's pro-EU incumbent Maia Sandu on Sunday won a tense presidential runoff, beating her rival backed by a pro-Russian party in what she described as a "lesson in democracy."

The election in the ex-Soviet republic that lies sandwiched between war-torn Ukraine and the European Union has been overshadowed by allegations of meddling by Moscow.

In a win for pro-EU forces in Moldova, incumbent President Maia Sandu defeated Alexandr Stoianoglo in the November 3 presidential runoff, securing a second term. Sandu achieved a roughly 54% to 45% lead, with nearly all ballots counted.

A referendum on Moldova joining the EU passed with a razor-thin majority on Monday as pro-Brussels President Maia Sandu blamed the outcome on foreign meddling in a veiled reference to Russia, which denied the accusations.

The Kremlin called on Sandu to "prove" election interference in the ex-Soviet republic bordering war-torn Ukraine and alleged "anomalies" in Moldova's vote count.

Moldova narrowly voted in favor of advancing EU membership talks, according to early results on Monday, in a significant development for President Maia Sandu. Sandu had sought overwhelming support for closer EU integration, but the vote passed with only a slim majority of 50.24%, based on returns from 98.74% of polling stations.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu has accused foreign interference of attempting to manipulate the country's presidential election and referendum on European integration, describing it as an "unprecedented" attack. In her statement, Sandu claimed that criminal groups, collaborating with foreign entities hostile to Moldova, attempted to buy 300,000 votes.

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.

A Moldovan deputy for the pro-Russian Socialist Party, Alla Dolinta, resigned on Wednesday from parliament and from the Socialist Party of Moldova, PSRM, because of the party's stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"For over four-and-a-half months, in a neighbouring state, Ukraine, which is essentially my home because my parents were born there, is at war," she said.

Moldovan president Maia Sandu on Sunday promulgated the Informational Security Law, which will ban the broadcast in Moldova of Russian TV news and political analysis.

The law, designed to counter Russian propaganda about the war in Ukraine, says that the ban will still apply after the expiration of the state of emergency established in Moldova after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu has told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that Moldova pays large sums of money for Russian gas - and the country's intentions to join the EU have been known for years.

The director of Moldova's National Anti-Corruption Centre, Iulian Rusu, announced on Monday evening the seizure of oligarch Ilan Shor's assets in the country.

"The seizures applied by the Criminal Assets Recovery Agency reached the amount of 1.5 billion lei [about 75 million euros]. These are properties from Moldova," Rusu told TV8.