Sawt Falasteen - Moldova votes on EU future amid fears of Russian meddling

The elections are a test of the former Soviet republic's pro-European turn under incumbent President Maia Sandu, who is seeking a second term.

Police made hundreds of arrests after discovering a massive vote-buying scheme, warning this week that up to a quarter of the ballots cast in the country of 2.6 million could be tainted by Russian cash.

Sandu, who beat a Moscow-backed incumbent in 2020, cut ties with Moscow and applied for Moldova to join the EU following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

She has repeatedly sounded the alarm about Russian efforts to interfere in the vote -- a claim Moscow has rejected.

"We categorically reject these accusations," Russian state news agencies quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying on Monday.

Washington issued a fresh warning this week about suspected Russian interference, while the EU passed new sanctions on several Moldovans.

"I have come to cast my vote for prosperity, peace and wellbeing in our country," said Olga Cernega, a 60-year-old economist, after voting in freezing weather in the capital Chisinau.

Another voter, Ghenadie, who declined to give his last name, said he was worried by what he saw as the country's "western" drift and thought the government was "making the situation worse" economically.

An hour from there in the town of Varnita, a special polling booth was set up for inhabitants of the breakaway pro-Russian region of Transnistria.

Nicolai, 33, an IT specialist, came to vote with his 5-year-old son.

He said he voted "yes" in the referendum and for Sandu as president.

"I want a life in a free and safe European country," he said, declining to give his full name to avoid repercussion in the state of Transnistria.

- 'Fate of our country' -

Sandu, 52, a former World Bank economist, is the clear favourite in the race.

But with only 35.8 percent of voter support, she is predicted to fall short of the majority needed to avoid a second-round ballot on November 3, according to the latest polls by the WatchDog think tank.

"This election will determine our fate for many years," Sandu said when she came out to vote.

She said the "will of the Moldovan people" should be heard, "not that of others, not dirty money".

Her 10 competitors include Alexandr Stoianoglo, a 57-year-old former prosecutor supported by the pro-Russian Socialists, who is polling at nine percent.

Renato Usatii, a 45-year-old former mayor of Moldova's second largest city Balti, is predicted to win 6.4 percent.

Polls opened at 7:00 am (0400 GMT), with the national anthem playing over loudspeakers in the capital Chisinau, according to an AFP journalist.

Voting will end at 9:00 pm and partial results are expected from around 10:00 pm.

Voter turnout at 3:00 pm local time was 39 percent for the presidential election, and 33 percent for a referendum asking whether the constitution should be modified to include joining the EU as an objective.

The 27-member bloc began membership talks with Chisinau this June.

Of those surveyed, 55.1 percent said they would vote "yes", while 34.5 percent said they were set on "no".

For any referendum result to be valid, participation must reach at least 33 percent, indicating that Sunday's result should be valid. Some pro-Russian parties have campaigned for a boycott.

- 'Hard at work' -

Sandu toured the country saying that joining the EU will help improve life in one of Europe's poorest nations.

Sandu's critics say she has not done enough to fight inflation and reform the judiciary.

In his campaign, Stoianoglo -- who was fired as prosecutor by Sandu -- has called for the "restoration of justice" and vowed to wage a "balanced foreign policy".

He abstained from voting in the referendum.

Usatii has said he is the best choice, as he is "the only one who is not controlled either by the East or the West".

Fears of Russian interference are looming large.

Police said this month that millions of dollars from Russia to corrupt voters were funnelled into the country by people affiliated to Ilan Shor, a fugitive businessman and former politician.

The "unprecedented" scheme could taint up to 300,000 ballots, according to police.

Convicted in absentia last year for fraud, Shor regularly brands Moldova a "police state" and the West's "obedient puppet".

"Russia is hard at work. They have never (before) put in so much money," Romanian historian Armand Gosu, who specialises in Russia and the former Soviet space, told AFP.

In addition to the suspected vote buying, hundreds of young people were found to have been trained in Russia and the Balkans to create "mass disorder" in Moldova, including in tactics to provoke law enforcement, according to police.

C.Hamad--SF-PST