On Sunday, 50.46% of Moldovans voted yes in a referendum on joining the EU, according to the eastern European country’s central electoral commission.
“The referendum asked voters whether they would change the wording of the country’s constitution,” the Guardian’s Russian affairs reporter Pjotr Sauer tells Michael Safi. “The wording would be changed to make joining the EU a main strategic goal of the country.”
The referendum campaign was beset by allegations of Russian interference. The Moldovan government has accused Moscow of trying to dissuade voters from supporting the move towards the EU.
“Everything from spreading misinformation through Telegram and social media,” Pjotr says. “Organising protests, training protesters in Russia and then sending them back to Moldova. And I think the most direct impact was just crude vote-buying. Moldovan officials have said that Russia has spent over €100m on the elections.”
What will the razor-thin result mean for Moldova’s future?
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