Blow for Putin as Russia-leaning party struggles in Moldova election

Moldova's pro-EU party has secured a strong win against its Russia-leaning rival in what has been described as the most consequential election since the country's independence.

With all votes counted, Moldova's ruling party, the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS), had a share of 50.2%, versus 24.2% for the Patriotic Bloc, which opposes closer ties with Brussels. Holding a majority in the 101-seat chamber allows PAS to keep pushing for its goal of joining the EU.

If it had fallen short, it would have had to try to form a coalition with smaller parties. The Patriotic Bloc aims to steer the nation - a former Soviet republic - away from closer ties with Brussels and the EU.

Moldova's pro-Western president Maia Sandu, who wants the country to join the EU by 2030, reiterated long-held claims that Russia has interfered with elections. After casting her ballot, she said: "Russia poses a danger to our democracies.

Our democracy is young and fragile, but that does not mean that states with longer democracies are not in danger. "We want to live in a democracy." The Kremlin reacted on Monday by accusing the authorities in Moldova of preventing hundreds of thousands of Moldovans living in Russia from voting and, asked whether Moscow recognised the results, spokesman Dmitry Peskovnoted that some political forces in Moldova had spoken of violations.

In the build up to the election, Prime Minister Dorin Recean warned that Russia was spending "hundreds of millions" of euros as part of an alleged hybrid war to try to seize power, which he described as "the final battle for our country's future". PAS leaders, including the party's leader Igor Grosu, have called vote the most consequential in Moldova since independence.

Moscow has always denied meddling and says the government is spreading anti-Russian hysteria to win votes. Read more from Sky News: 'I'm not so careful with what I say' - Trump's jaw-dropping weekThis was the most abusive Ryder Cup in almost a century of matches Election day itself was marked by a string of incidents, ranging from bomb threats at multiple polling stations abroad to cyber attacks on electoral and government infrastructure.

Police also detained three people suspected of plotting to cause unrest after the vote. 'A path of freedom' British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on X: "Congratulations to President Maia Sandu on her decisive election victory.

"Despite Russia's attempts to undermine Moldova's democracy, the people of Moldova have chosen a path of freedom." French President Emmanuel Macron hailed the apparent results of the elections as he said on X: "Despite attempts at interference and pressure, the choice of Moldovan citizens has been strongly affirmed. "France stands alongside Moldova in its European project and its drive for freedom and sovereignty." EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: "Moldova, you've done it again." Why would Russia want to interfere? Moldova is landlocked between Ukraine and Romania.

The country of about 2.5 million people has spent recent years on a Westward path and gained candidate status to the EU in 2022, shortly after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. If Moldova becomes a permanent EU member, it would mean a distancing from Moscow, as the EU has offered support to Ukraine and has put various sanctions in place against Russia.

However, candidate status does not guarantee a country membership to the EU. In order for a country to become a full member, candidates must adopt democratic norms and undertake reforms to meet EU rules, regulations and standards.

All EU governments then have to agree before that country can be admitted as an EU member. The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which often monitors elections to ensure they are fair, said Moldova's parliamentary vote was competitive but marred by serious cases of foreign interference.

Paula Cardoso, co-coordinator of the OSCE's short-term observer mission, said Moldova's decision to exclude two parties just days before the vote undermined "legal certainty of the contestant status and limited their right to seek effective remedy"..