Moldovan government resigns after numerous crises

Europe's poorest country was struggling with the numerous “crisis”, outgoing Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilita said on Friday.

With the war raging in neighbouring Ukraine, Moldova has faced inflation, high energy prices, an influx of refugees and Russian aggression.

The news came just hours after the Russian missiles flew over Moldova's airspace.

Announcing her resignation Friday, Gavrilita said that when her government was elected in 2021, no one expected to have to manage “as much of the crisis caused by Russian aggression in Ukraine”.

Moldova is uncertainly close to the war it shares a thousand-and-two-mile border with Ukraine and has suffered much from the consequences of the Russian occupation.

“I took the government with an anti-corruption, pro-developing and pro-European mandate at a time when corruption schemes had seized all institutions, and the oligarchs felt immune to”, Gavrilita said at a press conference.

“We were immediately confronted with energy blackmail, and those who did this hoped we would surrender”, she added, referring to the Kremlin.

An energy crisis flared up last year when Russia suddenly reduced its gas supplies to Moldova, which relied 100% on Russian gas. This caused inflation to rise in the sky and public turmoil for high energy costs.

The president, Maya Sandu, thanked Mrs. Gavrilit for the “sacrifice and its great efforts to lead the country at a time of so much crisis”.

“We have stability, peace and development, where others wanted war and bankruptcy” said the president.

She has already appointed her former defence adviser, Dorin Recean, who is also in favour of the EU as the next prime minister. The Moldovan Parliament will vote to confirm its appointment next week.