Moldova narrowly votes for closer EU ties in knife-edge referendum
Moldova has narrowly voted for closer ties to the European Union, electoral authorities say.
The yes campaign won with a margin of less than one percent - just a few thousand votes.
Voters were asked to choose whether to enshrine a path towards EU membership in the country's constitution.
The result came after Moldova's pro-EU president Maia Sandu accused "criminal groups" of undermining the referendum.
The Kremlin criticised the vote and said the "opposition was deprived of the opportunity of engaging in the electoral process".
It said the "election was not free" and the "sudden increase in votes" for the pro-EU side is "difficult to explain".
Moldovans also voted in a separate presidential election.
President Sandu, who is hoping for a second term, had a lead over Alexandr Stoianoglo but was short of an overall majority.
That result would set up a potentially tight run-off between Ms Sandu and Mr Stoianoglo, a former prosecutor-general backed by the pro-Russian Party of Socialists.
After the polls closed, Ms Sandu said the country faced an "unprecedented" assault on both votes and that groups backed by foreign forces had tried to buy up to 300,000 votes.
"We are waiting for the final results, and we will respond with firm decisions," she said in a statement.
Moldovan police seized money and documents they allege were linked to Russian-backed groups, but the Kremlin denied any involvement.
Moldova, one of the poorest countries in Europe, applied to join the EU after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Around 2.7 million people were eligible for the presidential election and referendum, according to figures from the president's office.
Moscow is not keen to give up influence in the former Soviet state, strategically positioned next to Ukraine and the Black Sea.
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