LAST UPDATE | 5 hrs ago
A REFERENDUM ON Moldova joining the EU has passed with a razor-thin majority today as pro-Brussels President Maia Sandu blamed the outcome on foreign meddling in a veiled reference to Russia, which denied the accusations.
The closeness of the vote is a setback for Sandu, who managed to top the first round of presidential elections held at the same time on Sunday but will face a tough second round.
The referendum had been widely expected to pass in the country of 2.6 million people which neighbours war-torn Ukraine.
Sandu applied for Moldova to join the European Union following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
A stern Sandu said late Sunday that Moldova had witnessed ”an unprecedented assault on our country’s freedom and democracy, both today and in recent months,” blaming “criminal groups, working together with foreign forces hostile to our national interests”.
Moscow has “categorically” rejected accusations of meddling.
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