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Another Russian journalist denied entry to Moldova — paper

Darya Aslamova was forced to take a plane to Bucharest at Chisinau’s airport, with no reason for entry denial provided

MOSCOW, September 26. /TASS/. Another Russian journalists, Darya Aslamova of Komsomolskaya Pravda daily, has been denied entry to Moldova.

The newspaper said on its website on Tuesday, Aslamova was forced to take a plane to Bucharest at Chisinau’s airport, with no reason for entry denial provided.

Aslamova was to take an interview with Moldovan President Igor Dodon and had his written consent on her.

Moldovan President Igor Dodon has pledged later in the day to clarify the situation.

"I don’t know why Darya Aslamova [a journalists from the Russian Komsomolskaya Pravda daily] has been barred from entering Moldova. We had an agreement with her: I was to give an interview. I will clarify the situation," Dodon told reporters of Komsomolskaya Pravda in Moldova newspaper.

Aslamova has already landed in Bucharest and plans to take a plane for Moscow on Wednesday.

"Having learnt about the reason of my coming from Chisinau, Romanian border officers tried to cheer me up saying I am in a European country, not in uncivilized Moldova," she told TASS over the phone.

She expressed regret over the actions of Moldovan border officers who had even refused to give a written explanation of why she had been denied entry to that country. "They literally dragged me out of the airport building and pushed me into the plane. I have been to many countries but I have never encountered such attitude to journalists, the more so as I came there to take an interview with the country’s president. They behaved like a junta," Aslamova noted.

The press service of Moldova’s border service however said Aslamova had been denied entry to Moldova "as the purpose of her visit was not indicated." "It is not a ban," the press service said.

Earlier, the Moldovan authorities denied entry to the country to a number of Russian political scientists, public figures and journalists, including from NTV, REN TV, Life news channels. In late July, entry was denied to a group of Russian singers who were supposed to take part in festivities on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the peacekeeping operation in the unrecognized republic of Transnistria. In August, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin was declared persona non grata in Moldova.

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