Moldova heads to the polls in tense vote that could steer country closer to EU or Russia | Moldova
On Sunday, Moldovans began to vote in the parliamentary elections and blames the government and the EU Russia for “deeply intervening” on the road to the pro -European road of the neighboring country of the neighboring country.
Moldova, a country of EU candidate, has long been closer to Brussels and Soviet relations with Moscow.
Most surveys have been leading the pro -EU Action and Solidarity Party (PAS) in power since 2021. However, analysts say the race is far from being certain.
The survey cabinets were opened at 7 am (0400 GMT) and will close at 21:00 and the results are expected later on Sunday.
The pro -EU president, Maia Sandu of Pas, voted Moldova’s “ultimately selection ve and warned Moscow’s orbit to a deeper fall.
Sandu wrote on Friday X on Friday, “the result will reinforce our democracy and join the EU, or that Russia has dragged and dragged us into a gray area,” he wrote on Friday.
While the EU faced Moldova’s “an unprecedented disinformation campaign from Russia, a“ siege in our country ”, Prime Minister Dorin.
Moscow claimed that Chisinau carried out an online disinformation campaign and wanted to confuse votes and unrest.
Moldova’s pro -Russian opposition accused Pas of planning fraud.
Voters, one of the poorest in Europe, expressed their frustration on economic difficulties and the skepticism of the EU membership in Moscow after the 2022 Ukrainian invasion.
In the last parliamentary elections, a loss for the majority pass can relieve obstacles in forcing EU integration.
On Friday, in a rust rally in the capital, people shouted “We want to be in Europe” and “My country is not for sale”.
At the beginning of the vote, the prosecutors made hundreds of search for the government’s saying and made dozens of arrest attempts ”and dozens of arrests.
On Friday, the election commission excluded two pro -Russian parties from the race to financing irregularities. Opposition decisions hit.
The government accused the Kremlin of spending hundreds of millions of euros with “dirty money” to intervene in the campaign.
“This is the biggest effort and these are the most important choices since the Republic of Moldova became independent”, and on Friday, the Pas Rally told AFP.
According to Igor Botan, president of Moldovan Thinkank Adept, foreign intervention and restlessness threats are “the most important risks”.
“We didn’t have such a phenomenon before in our election campaigns,” he said.
Analysts, participation will be decisive-especially in the large and powerful diaspora, which tends to vote for PAS, and in the separation zone of Transnistri, a pro-Russian-prone tilted.
For 101 parliamentary seats, approximately 20 political parties and independent candidates are working.
Former president Igor Dodon, one of the leaders of the pro -Russian opposition, said that he was convinced that the opposition would be the majority of the opposition ”.
“We will continue to discuss discussions, negotiations with the EU, but we will establish relations with the Russian Federation,” he said.
“Moldova is currently governed by a dictatorial regime that violates democratic norms under the EU.”
Botan said the result was “very difficult to predict”.
“Post -election negotiations to create an alliance [to govern] There are great possibilities and things here are uncertain. ”
