A narrower-than-expected victory for pro-EU incumbent Maia Sandu chimes with Moldova’s electoral history and complex regional loyalties.

The Georgian Dream party is stoking hopes among ordinary Georgians about the return of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Yet without Moscow’s approval, it’s impossible to imagine substantive negotiations taking place.

Amid the war in Ukraine, almost every politician in Moldova wants to avoid being seen as strongly pro-Russian. But public support for Russia remains significant.  

Former prosecutor general Alexandr Stoianoglo already has the support of Moldova’s most popular opposition politician in his bid to become president.

By adopting the law on foreign agents, the ruling Georgian Dream party is inviting Russia and the West to compete for Tbilisi’s favor.

An extraordinary parliamentary session in Transnistria was a bid to attract international attention and a signal that the de facto state is ready to escalate.

Moldovan President Maia Sandu is going all in on EU integration successes as she looks to win presidential elections in the fall.

The de facto state of Transnistria and its dispute with Moldova has always been a peripheral matter for the international community. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it has faded even further into the background.

The international reaction to events in Nagorno-Karabakh has failed to prevent Azerbaijan from using military force to change the facts on the ground.

Even if Georgia knew nothing about Russia’s decision beforehand, the current arrangement suits both the Kremlin and official Tbilisi: it helps Georgian Dream to hold on to power, while Russia is building on barely existent ties with Georgia that may lead to greater gains for Moscow in the future.