Moldova bars pro-Russian party from taking part in local elections

FILE PHOTO: Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean attends a news conference following talks with Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca in Chisinau, Moldova, March 23, 2023. REUTERS/Vladislav Culiomza/File Photo

CHISINAU (Reuters) -Authorities in Moldova on Friday barred a pro-Russian party from taking part in local elections on the grounds it endangers national security -- two days before the vote viewed as a litmus test of President Maia Sandu's campaign to join the European Union.

Prime Minister Dorin Recean announced the bar on candidates from the Chance Party linked to fugitive business magnate Ilan Shor - jailed in absentia earlier this year on fraud charges.