EU leaders visit Moldova to back Sandu ahead of parliamentary election

Leaders from France, Germany and Poland visited Chisinau on the 34th anniversary of Moldova's independence to publicly back President Maia Sandu and her campaign to join the European Union, as the country prepares for a high stakes parliamentary election on September 28. The visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk came a day before formal campaigning begins and follows government accusations of intensified Russian interference aimed at shaping the vote.

The three European leaders met Sandu for a joint press statement and were scheduled to speak at official Independence Square events, underscoring a show of support for Moldova's sovereignty and European trajectory. "Kremlin propaganda tells us that Europeans want to prolong the war and that the European Union oppresses its people. These are lies," Macron said, adding that the EU is "a union of prosperity and peace." Chancellor Merz warned that "not a day goes by without massive hybrid attacks from Russia. Moldova's democracy is in the crosshairs." President Sandu described Moldova's path to EU membership as "irreversible" and said the country is moving...