Russia denounces Moldova's election as unfair, challenges legitimacy of Maia Sandu's victory

Russia has condemned Moldova's recent election, labeling it unfair and refusing to recognize Maia Sandu as the legitimate president.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said hundreds of thousands of Moldovans living in Russia had not been allowed to vote - unlike Moldovans living in the West, whose votes were critical to Sandu's victory, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

"These elections were neither democratic nor fair," Peskov said.

"As for Ms. Sandu - you know that she is not, in our understanding, the president of her country - because in the country itself, the majority of the population did not vote for her, and we are talking about a very, very divided society. These contradictions will certainly continue," he said.

Russian's Foreign Ministry earlier described the Moldovan contest as "the most undemocratic election campaign in all the years of Moldovan independence".

Pro-Western Sandu defeated a former prosecutor general backed by a traditionally pro-Russian party in a vote marred by allegations of election meddling by Moscow, which the Kremlin denied.

Official results showed that Sandu had won thanks to strong backing from Moldovans voting from overseas. Within the country's borders, she lost by a narrow margin.

News.Az