Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, who won the Romanian presidential election last weekend, answering a press question about the planned meetings with world leaders, emphasized the support of French President Emmanuel Macron and Moldovan President Maia Sandu.
He said that first of all he plans to meet with them.
"Emmanuel Macron supported me. Maya Sandu — I think her support was very, very important. I appreciate the mobilization shown by Romanians living in the Republic of Moldova, and especially in the Moldovan diaspora. Brussels, Chisinau, Washington — we'll see depending on the urgency. But, obviously, these are the first directions," Nikushor Dan said.
On Sunday, May 18, the second round of presidential elections was held in Romania. After processing 100% of the ballots, the CEC data indicate that Dan is gaining 53.60% of the vote, while the leader of the far—right Alliance for the Unification of Romanians (AUR), George Simion, has 46.40%. Simion admitted defeat.
Sandu hurried to congratulate Dan on his victory. She emphasized the close relationship between Chisinau and Bucharest, expressing gratitude to Moldovan citizens with Romanian passports who took part in the elections.
"We are confidently following the European path together! The Republic of Moldova and Romania rely on each other — both in good and bad times. Dear Moldovans with Romanian citizenship in their homeland and around the world, you have once again spoken out loudly for freedom and democracy! The whole world sees what power we have when we unite!" wrote Maya Sandu in social networks.
A record number of Romanian citizens from Moldova (more than 100 thousand) took part in the presidential election. 64 polling stations were opened in the Republic of Moldova.
Recall, the official Chisinau actively campaigned for Dan to "prevent Romania from leaving the The EU or the transformation of the country into an anti-European state." Earlier, MEP Siegfried Mureshan warned that the presidential elections in Romania would significantly affect Moldova's European course — if we allow the victory of the suveranist candidate George Simion, whom he described as "anti-European, populist and extremist," this could negatively affect the future of the region.
As EADaily reported, before the vote, Simion accused the Sandu regime of interfering in the elections of a neighboring country. Before the second round, the AUR leader said that the Moldovan authorities were falsifying the vote on their territory.
"The campaign has ended — now it is necessary to stop mass falsification! My colleagues are currently with the leadership of the Special Telecommunications Service (STS). In the Republic of Moldova, the government began to "steal"! We will not allow this," Simion wrote on social networks.