MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. A strong protest has been expressed to Moldovan Ambassador to Moscow Lilian Darii over Chisinau’s unfriendly and discriminatory actions against Russian observers within the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) mission at the presidential election in that country, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

"On November 6, Moldovan Ambassador to Russia Lilian Darii was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry. A strong protest was expressed to the ambassador over official Chisinau’s unfriendly and discriminatory actions against Russian short-term observers with the OSCE ODIHR monitoring mission at the presidential election in Moldova," it said.

The ministry recalled that ahead of the first round of voting and the constitutional referendum on Moldova’s accession to the European Union, which were held on October 20, Moldova’s authorities had denied accreditation to five international observers from Russia, with no reasons provided. Moreover, ahead of the runoff election on November 3, three Russian members of the OSCE ODIHR mission were stopped at the Chisinau airports and banned from entering Moldova, although they had accreditations from the Moldovan Central Electoral Commission.

The ministry slammed these actions as a flagrant violation of Chisinau’s international commitments, including the 1990 OSCE Copenhagen Document and the 2002 CIS Convention on democratic election standards, electoral rights and freedoms. "These steps were taken by a country, which is candidate for the EU membership, which clearly demonstrates European democratic values the Moldovan leadership is seeking to commit itself," the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.

"A similar representation over the flagrant actions by the Moldovan authorities against international observers from Russia is being made to the OSCE ODIHR leadership via Russia’ permanent mission to the OSCE in Vienna," it added.